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OR,  THE 


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OMING 


OF  THE  LORD. 


By    "WILI^IS     LORD       D.  D 


LIBRARY 

OF  THE 

University  of  California. 


QIFX   OF" 


Mrs.  SARAH  P.  WALSWORTH. 

Received  October,  i8g4. 
^Accessions  l^o.S^^shf-.-      Class  No, 


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THE  BLESSED  HOPE: 


I         /■ 


OR, 


THE  GLORIOUS  COimG 


OF  THE  LORD. 


Every  eye  shall  see  Him."— RkveIjAtion  1:  7. 


BY 


WILLIS    LORD,    D.  D 


Chicago: 
w.  g.  holmes.  77  madison  street, 

1877. 


S  T'S-S-S 
L6, 


Copyright,  W.  G.  Holmes,  1877. 


A.   J.    GOFF  &   CO.,    PRINTERS,    CHICAGO. 


Contents 


PAGB 

1.  The  First  Coming  of  the  Messiah,  -       -         i 

2.  He  will  Come  Again,    -       -       -  -       -       -  23 

3.  When  will  He  Come  Again?          -  -       -        59 

4.  Question  of  Time,  Continued,    -  -       -       -  99 

5.  Power  and  Use  of  this  Hope,         -  -        -      151 


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IfratjBr* 


Most  Holy  Spirit  of  God  f  Guide 
Thou  the  writer  and  the  readers  of 
this  little  book  into  the  knowledge  of 
Hijn,  of  whom  Moses  in  the  law, 
and  the  prophets  did  write  as  the 
Messiah ;  and  whom  the  evangelists 
and  apostles  proclaimed  as  the  divine 
Redeemer  and  Lord  of  men.    Amen. 


THE  FIEST  COMIM. 


uhivbrsitt; 


THE  FIRST   COMING. 


#♦« 


"  When  the  fulness  of  the  time  was  come,  God  sent  forth  his 
Son,  made  of  a  woman,  made  under  the  law,  to  redeem  them 
that  were  under  the  law." — Gal.  4:4. 


"  Christ,  by  highest  heaven  adored ; 
Christ,  the  Everlasting-  Lord; 
Late  in  time,  behold  Him  come, 
Offspring  of  the  virgin's  w^omb. 
Veiled  in  flesh,  the  Godhead  see ; 
Hail,  the  Incarnate  Deity! 
Pleased,  as  man,  w^ith  men  to  dwell, 
Jesus,  the  Immanuel !  "  * 


^  I  ^HE  great  Hope  set  before  men,  in  the 
^  Old  Testament,  was  the  coming  of  the 
Messiah.  As  the  bow  in  the  cloud,  when  the 
storm  is  past,  stretches  from  horizon  to  hor- 
izon, so  this  hope  spanned,  with  its  beauty 
and  power,  the  whole  period  from  Eden  to 
Bethlehem.     It  sprang  up   out   of   that  gra- 


\ 


The  Blessed  Hope. 


clous  promise  of  God,  so  strangely  yet  sig- 
nificantly wrought  into  the  curse  upon  the 
serpent,  after  the  fall.  It  became  a  most 
wondrous  historic  fact,  by  the  birth  of  Jesus 
Christ,  the  Son  of  Mary,  and  the  Son  of  God. 

REVELATION    PROGRESSIVE. 

Divine  Revelation  was  progressive.  Its 
first  rays  were  few  and  dim.  They  cast,  in- 
deed, a  blessed  gleam  upon  One  who  should 
be  the  seed  of  the  woman,  but  who,  notwith- 
standing this,  in  the  terrific  conflict  just  then 
begun,  would  at  length  conquer.  As  the 
centuries  rolled  on  the  sacred  liofht  shone 
clearer,  fuller,  brighter.  It  brought  gradually 
into  view  all  the  varied  and  marvellous 
aspects  of  the  character  and  work  of  Him 
who  was  to  be,  not  only  the  Bruiser  of 
the  serpent,  but  also  the  Bringer  of  Rest ; 
the  Redeeming  Angel  ;  the  revered  and 
world-ruling  Shiloh ;  the  Stone  and  Shep- 
herd of  Israel ;  the  Captain  of  the  Lord's 
Host ;  the  Root  and  the  Offspring  of  David ; 


The  First   Coining. 


the  Wonderful;  the  Counsellor;  the  Mighty 
God  ;  the  Everlasting  Father ;  the  Prince  of 
Peace ;  the  Lord  our  Righteousness ;  the 
Messenger  of  the  Covenant;  or,  putting. the 
immense  meaning  of  all  these  names  into 
one — the  Messiah. 

PROPHETIC    VISION. 

By  the  godly  of  the  former  dispensations, 
the  coming  of  the  Messiah  was  doubtless 
conceived  of  as  one  coming.  They  saw, 
indeed,  the  differing  and  often  antagcmlstic 
features  of  His  presence  and  action  among 
men,  as  delineated  by  the  prophets  ;  but,  to 
their  view,  those  features  were  intermingled. 
Distance  shortened,  or  altogether  effaced  the 
perspective.  When  from  a  remote  point  we 
look  upon  the  mountains,  they  seem  as  if 
in  contact.  Base  crowds  upon  base ;  peak 
touches  peak.  In  fact,  they  are  separate, 
often,  by  wide  intervals.  Ascend  the  range 
which  is  nearest,  and  from  Its  top  you  learn 
that    what    seemed    a    part    of   it  is  afar  off. 


The  Blessed  Hope. 


So  when  the  ancient  prophets,  in  the  light 
of  the  Lord,  looked  into  the  future,  it  was 
like  looking  upon  the  mountains.  The  great 
events  embosomed  there  appeared  contigu- 
ous, side  by  side.  There  was  but  little,  if 
any,  discernible  distance  between  them.  As, 
however,  in  the  flow  of  time,  prophecy  has 
become  history,  those  events  have  proved 
to  be  successive ;  often,  remote,  each  from 
the  other.  Isaiah  and  Daniel,  for  instance, 
had  most  impressive  visions  of  things  then  to 
come.  They  saw  the  Messiah.  They  saw 
Him — now  in  His  humiliation,  despised  and 
rejected  of  men,  and  led  in  silence  as  a  lamb 
to  the  slaughter.  They  saw  Him — now  in 
His  glory  as  a  mighty  King,  the  joy  of  His 
true  subjects,  and  triumphing  over  all  His  foes. 
It  was,  however,  as  if  in  one  and  the  same 
picture.  Its  dark  shades  and  Its  glowing  lights 
were  blended.  No  clearly  defined,  much  less 
long  interval,  was  apparent  between  the  altar 
and  the  throne ;  the  cross  and  the  crown. 
With  us,  Calvary  is  In  the  far  past ;  the  mil- 


The  First  Coming. 


lennlal    conquests    and    glories    are    yet    to 
come. 

AMONG    THE    GENTILES. 

Nor  was  this  great  Hope  limited  to  the 
worshippers  of  Jehovah.  In  the  substance  of 
it,  it  had  a  place  and  power  among  the  Gen- 
tiles. As  the  families  of  men  increased  and 
went  out  in  separate  and  diverging  lines  from 
the  original  home  of  the  race,  they  carried 
with  them  the  memories  of  the  lost  paradise. 
Among  the  most  vivid  of  those  memories  was 
that  promise  of  Jehovah  Elohim — the  Lord 
God,  of  the  victory,  at  length,  over  the  serpent, 
the  prime  deceiver  and  destroyer,  by  the  seed 
of  the  woman,  the  most  gracious  and  power- 
ful restorer  ;  that,  however  long  and  fierce  the 
battle  might  be,  Immanuel  should  win  it.  The 
golden  age  with  which  the  world  began  had 
indeed  vanished  away,  but  from  the  ruins 
around  them,  they  looked  hopefully  forward 
to  a  golden  age  in  the  future.  Doubtless,  as 
one  generation  after  another  came  and  went, 


The  Blessed  Hope. 


this  hope  as  resting  on  a  divine  promise  grew 
more  and  more  indefinite  and  feeble,  but  then 
necessity  took  the  place  of  promise.  Human 
needs  became  great  and  most  urgent.  The 
consciousness,  also,  of  creature  impotence  be- 
came complete.  God  alone  could  save.  The 
Gentiles  as  well  as  the  chosen  people  were 
compelled  to  look  upward.  Socrates  and 
Plato,  the  peers  of  the  mightiest  in  intellect, 
confessed  that  help  must  come  from  a  Divine 
One.  Before  the  last  of  the  Hebrew  prophets, 
the  hope  of  Israel  was  also  the  desire  of  the 
nations.  This  deep  feeling  ripened  into 
strong  faith  and  intense  expectation.  As  the 
Christian  era  drew  nigh,  men  everywhere  were 
intent  on  what  should  come.  In  the  West,  Vir- 
gil sung  of  the  last  time  of  the  Cumean  Sibyl, 
as  present ;  of  a  new  order  of  the  ages  just  at 
hand  ;  of  a  new  progeny  about  to  descend 
from  the  skies  and  bring  back  the  reign  of 
truth  and  right.  All  through  the  East,  as 
Tacitus  and  Suetonius  relate,  the  nations  were 
looking  for  some  extraordinary  person  to  arise 


The  First  Coming. 


in  Judea  and  sway  the  sceptre  of  the  world. 
In  Jerusalem,  that  earthly  centre  of  the  most 
sacred  memories  and  hopes,  devout  souls  like 
Simeon  and  Anna  were  daily  waiting  for  the 
consolation  of  Israel.  From  their  distant 
home,  near  the  Euphrates,  or  perhaps  in 
Persia,  the  Magi  actually  came  to  the  cove- 
nant land  with  costly  gifts  and  profound 
homage  for  the  new-born  King. 

THE    SIGNS    FULFILLED. 

We  can  see  that  precisely  then  the  signs 
^t  of  this  great  event,  as  foretold  by  the  prophets, 
had  become,  or  were  visibly  becoming  histori- 
ical  facts.  The  Tabernacle  of  David  was  fallen 
down.  The  memorable  weeks  of  Daniel  drew 
near  to  their  close.  The  second  temple  was 
still  standing  but  would  presently  be  destroyed. 
The  sceptre  was  departing  from  Judah,  and  a 
Lawgiver  from  between  His  feet.  What  of 
regal  and  legislative  power  still  remained  to 
the  Jews  was  wielded  by  Herod,  an  Edomite 
and  a  tyrant.      He  had  the   name,  and   sur-     , 


8  The  Blessed  Hope. 

rounded  himself  with  all  the  pageantry  of  a 
king,  but  he  was  dependent  upon  the  will  and 
power  of  Rome.  The  coin,  current  among  the 
people  for  secular  uses,  bore  the  image  and 
superscription  of  Caesar.  Soon  after  Herod's 
death,  Palestine  was  made  a  province  of  the 
iron  empire.  So  clearly  was  it  the  fulness  of 
the  time. 

CHARACTER    OF    THE   COMING. 

At  an  early  period  intelligent  faith  discerned 
that,  while  the  Messiah  was  to  be  the  seed  of 
the  woman,  He  was  also  to  be  immensely  more. 
Eve  herself  had  a  glimpse  of  the  wondrous 
fact,  when  she  exclaimed,  "  A  man,  Jehovah  !*^ 
Isaiah  declared  no  unknown  truth  when  he 
said,  "  Thou  shalt  call  his  name  Immanuel;" 
nor  Micah  when  he  wrote  :  "  Whose  goings 
forth  have  been  from  of  old,  from  everlasting  ;  '^ 
nor  Zechariah,  when  he  foretold  that  Jehovah 
of  Hosts  would  cry,  "Awake,  O  sword,  against 
the  man  that  is  my  fellow."  Upon  this  most 
august  Being  —  divine-human  —  the  faith  and 


The  First  Coming,  ^ 

hope  of  many  ages  fixed  with  an  unyielding 
grasp.  Such  an  One  it  was,  allied  both  to 
earth  and  heaven,  who  would  come  as  the 
Deliverer.  How  would  He  come  '^  How  did 
He  come  "^  The  fact  corresponded  literally 
with  the  prediction. 

NOT    ONLY    ESSENTIAL. 

He  came  not  only  in  His  essential  presence. 
By  this  presence  He  is  everywhere,  in  all 
worlds ;  through  all  duration.  He  was  thus 
in  the  world  from  the  day  of  its  birth,  as  He 
will  be  in  it  until  the  day  of  its  doom,  filling 
all  space  and  encompassing  all  being. 

NOR    ONLY    PROVIDENTIAL. 

.  ^  /       . 

He  came  not  only  in  His  providential  pres- 
ence. By  this  presence  also,  He  is  every- 
where. Having  made  the  worlds  and  the 
things  which  are  in  them.  He  constantly  up- 
holds and  governs  what  He  made  ;  pervading 
and   energizing  all  nature ;    maintaining  and 


3.  (Z^t^^fui  o<^^   - 


10  The  Blessed  Hope. 

operating  all  law  ;  directing  and  controlling  all 
•events. 

'^     NOR    ONLY    SPIRITUAL. 

He  came  not  only  in  His  spiritual  presence. 
In  this  sense,  too,  He  was  in  the  world  from 
the  beginning  until  the  flood,  striving  with  the 
wicked ;  imparting  life  and  strength  to  the 
^odly,  and  working  in  all  men  salutary  convic- 
tions of  sin  and  righteousness.  In  this  sense 
He  was  in  the  world  all  the  period  after  the 
flood,  from  Noah  to  Malachi ;  and  from 
Malachi  to  the  beginning  of  the  Gospel.  He 
wrought  faith  In  the  patriarchs.  He  gave  the 
spirit  of  law  and  government  to  Moses ;  of 
mighty  valor  to  Joshua;  of  righteous  judg- 
ment to  Samuel  ;  of  unequaled  song  to  David. 
It  was  He,  by  His  Holy  One,  in  the  prophets 
of  Israel  and  Judah,  who  stimulated  their  in- 
dividual life  and  power  as  men  of  God,  and 
fitted  them  for  the  noblest  service  in  connec- 
tion with  His  truth  and  His  kingdom. 

0?  THE 


[uitivbesitt; 


The  First   Coining.  11 

^NOR    ONLY    SYMBOLICAL. 

He  came  not  only  in  His  symbolical  pres- 
ence. In  the  earlier  ages,  when  the  written 
Word  was  not  yet  given,  or  was  only  in  its 
beginning.  He  made  Himself  known,  from 
time  to  time,  to  His  people,  in  fitting  and 
significant  forms  visible  to  their  sight ;  as  in 
the  sword-like  flame  at  Eden  ;  as  a  man  to 
Abraham  in  Mamre,  and  to  Jacob  at  Peniel  ; 
as  a  mighty  warrior  to  Joshua,  near  Jericho; 
and  as  the  angel  of  the  Lord  to  Manoah  and 
his  wife,  among  the  Danites.  All  these  ap- 
pearances, and  others  like  them,  were  theo- 
phanies-— manifestations  of  God.  They  were 
real^nd  supernatural,  but  they  were  symbolic 
and  transient^  ^iThey  occurred  in  seasons  of 
exigency.  They  served  special  purposes  in 
the  divine  administration.  They  were  all  fore- 
•shadows  of  something  better  and  more  glori- 
ous in  the  time  to  come.  They  were  made  by 
Him,  whom  the  saints  in  those  ages  knew  as  the 
Jehovah-angel,  or  the  angel  of  the  covenant. 


12  Tlie  Blessed  Hope. 

BUT    IN    THE    FLESH. 

He  came  by  incarnation.  The  Eternal 
Father  prepared  for  Him  a  body.  He  took 
into  union  with  Himself  our  nature,  and 
brought  himself  into  our  essential  condition. 
His  coming  was  literal,  visible,  personal.  The 
record  is  no  more  amazing  than  it  is  explicit. 
"In  the  beginning  was  the  Word,  and  the  Word 
was  with  God,  and  the  Word  was  God.  The 
same  was  in  the  beginning  with  God.  All 
things  were  made  by  Him,  and  without  Him 
was  not  anything  made  that  was  made.  In 
Him  was  life,  and  the  life  was  the  light  of  men. 
And  the  Word  was  made  flesh,  and  dwelt 
amxong  us,  full  of  grace  and  truth."  "  When 
the  fulness  of  the  time  was  come,  God  sent 
forth  His  Son  made  of  a  woman,  made  under 
the  law."  "  Who  being  in  the  form  of  God, 
thought  it  not  robbery  to  be  equal  with  God, 
but  made  Himself  of  no  reputation  ;  and  took 
upon  Him  the  form  of  a  servant,  and  was 
made  in  the  likeness  of  men,  and  being  found 


The  First  Coming.  13 

in  fashion  as  a  man  He  humbled  Himself,  and 
became  obedient  unto  death  ;  even  the  death 
of  the  cross  :  "  (John  i  :  1-14  ;  Gal.  4:4;  Phil. 
2  :  6-8.)  Men  saw  Him  in  the  weakness  of 
infancy.  They  saw  Him  grow  in  stature 
and  in  knowledge.  They  saw  Him  in  Judea, 
in  Samaria,  in  Galilee,  in  the  coast  of  Tyre 
and  Sidon,  going  about  doing  good ;  speaking 
most  gracious  words,  and  performing  most 
mighty  works.  They  saw  Him  tempted  in  the 
wilderness  ;  asleep  in  the  ship  on  Gennesaret ; 
weary  at  the  well  in  Sychar  ;  a-hungered  by 
the  wayside  from  Bethany  ;  in  tears  at  the 
grave  of  Lazarus.  They  saw  Him  in  agony  in 
the  garden  ;  in  the  sharp  pains  of  death  on  the 
cross  ;  and  buried  in  the  new  tomb  of  Joseph, 
which  was  hewn  out  in  a  rock.  In  the  body 
which  God  prepared  Him,  He  lived,  labored, 
suffered,  died,  rose  again,  and  ascended  on 
high,  whence  He  came,  leading  captivity  cap- 
tive. 


14  The  Blessed  Hope. 


RESULT. 

Thus,  In  exact  agreement  with  the  voices  of 
prophecy  through  the  centuries  before,  and 
with  the  resulting  hope  of  the  people  of  God,, 
the  long-looked  for  Messiah  came.  His  com- 
ing formed  an  epoch.  It  was  the  goal  of  all 
the  then  past;  it  was  the  starting-point  of  all 
the  then  future.  Then,  however,  was  seen 
what  had  not  been  seen  distinctly  until  then. 
From  the  summit  thus  gained,  men  discovered 
that  what  from  a  distance  had  seemed  to  be  a 
part  of  it,  was  in  fact,  another  summit  farther 
off.  Thev  discovered  that  an  interval,  filled 
with  most  interesting  and  vital  things,  lay 
between  the  humiliation  and  the  glory  of  the 
Messiah;  that  instead  of  intermingling,  as 
had  been  the  appearance  in  the  prophetic  pano- 
rama, they  were  separate  and  distinct,  each 
having  not  only  its  own  special  characteristics, 
but  also  its  own  special  period.  All  that  which 
had  been  foretold  of  the  former  was  indeed 
now  signally  fulfilled.     Not  one  word   which 


The  First   Coining.  15- 

"holy  men  spake  as  they  were  moved  by  the 
Holy  Ghost,"  when  "they  testified  beforehand, 
the  sufferings  of  Christ,"  fell  to  the  ground. 
"  He  was  in  the  world,  and  the  world  was  made 
by  Him,  and  the  world  knew  Him  not.  He 
came  unto  his  own,  and  his  own  received  Him 
not."  "  He  spake  as  never  man  spake,"  con-^ 
firming  his  incomparable  words  by  many  un- 
deniably divine  works,  but  in  vain  with  refer- 
ence to  the  mass  of  men.  Having  eyes  they 
saw  not,  and  having  ears  they  heard  not; 
neither  would  they  understand  with  their  heart 
and  be  converted.  /Expressing  his  estimate  of 
human  character,  Cicero  had  said  that  if  per- 
fect excellence  could  be  embodied,  or  become 
incarnate,  the  world  would  bow  down  and  wor- 
ship^j^The  great  Roman  orator  was  wholly 
mistaken.  In  the  Messiah,  perfect  excellence 
had  visible  embodiment;  and  yet  from  His 
birth  in  Bethlehem  to  His  death  on  the  cross, 
men  and  devils  combined  to  make  his  life  one 
of  trial  and  sorrow.  When  He  publicly 
entered  upon  His  unexampled  mission  as  the 


16  The  Blessed  Hope. 

Saviour  of  men,  Jews  and  Gentiles  alike  de- 
rided His  claims  and  rejected  His  message. 
""  The  kings  of  the  earth  stood  up,  and  the 
rulers  were  gathered  together  against  the  Lord 
and  against  his  Christ."  Pharisees  and  Sad- 
ducees,  scribes  and  priests  were  as  one  man  in 
their  will  and  efforts  to  put  Him  to  shame  be- 
fore the  people,  and  bring  discredit  on  His 
character.  His  teaching  and  His  works.  The 
fearful  climax  was  reached,  when  with  loud 
voices  the  furious  crowd  demanded  of  Pilate, 
^'  Crucify  Him!  crucify  Him  !"  and  that  crime 
without  a  parallel  was  done.     See  them : 

**  See  how  his  back  the  scourges  tear, 
Unto  the  bloody  pillar  bound  ; 
The  ploughers  make  long  furrows  there, 
Till  all  his  body  is  one  wound. 

In  scorn  they  robe  Him,  crown,  adore, 

In  spite  they  rend  His  robe  away ; 
They  crush  Him  with  that  burden  sore. 

They  drag  Him  up  the  accursed  way, 

His  sacred  limbs  they  stretch,  they  tear, 
With  nails  they  fasten  to  the  wood  ; 

His  sacred  limbs  exposed  and  bare, 
Or  only  covered  with  His  blood. 


The  First  Coming.  IT 

Behold  His  temples  crowned  with  thorn, 
His  bleeding  hands  spread  out  so  wide ; 

His  streaming  feet  transfixed  and  torn, 
The  fountain  gushing  from  His  side. 

Where  is  the  King  of  Glory  now? 

The  everlasting  Son  of  God  ? 
The  Immortal  hangs  His  languid  brow ; 

The  Almighty  faints  beneath  the  load." 

Most  Utter  humiliation  of  the  Messiah ! 
What  bitterer  ingredient  could  be  added  to 
His  cup  of  suffering  and  shame  .'^  It  did  not 
however  deter  Him,  nor  did  it  surprise  Him. 
He  foreknew  it  all  from  the  eternal  years  and 
made  haste  to  meet  it.  Most  freely  He  chose 
it  all,  rather  than  that  Satan  should  triumph 
and  men  should  perish.  It  had  its  firm  place 
in  the  covenant  of  peace  between  the  Father 
and  the  Son.  It  was  there  as  a  condition  of 
the  promised  glory.  It  was  thus  He  laid  the 
broad  and  deep  foundation  of  that  glory.  In 
this  way  It  was  He  finished  the  transgression, 
sealed  up  sins  from  the  sight  of  God,  made 
reconciliation  for  iniquity,  and  brought  in  the 
everlasting  righteousness.  By  means  of  the 
cross,  He  won  the  crown. 

8 


18  The  Blessed  Hope. 


INFERENCE. 

Nor  can  It  be  reasonably  doubted,  that  the 
absolutely  literal  fulfilment  of  everything 
which  the  sure  word  of  prophecy  foretold  of 
the  low  estate  of  Him  who  was  to  come,  In- 
vests with  certainty  a  like  fulfilment  of  every- 
thing which  the  same  sure  word  foretells  of 
(/Him  as  the  world-wide  Conqueror  and  the 
King  of  Kings.  God  himself  has  given  us  the 
true  principle  of  prophetic  fulfilment,  and 
therefore  of  prophetic  interpretation,  in  the 
palpable  and  amazing  facts  of  history.  Who 
will  dare  affirm,  in  respect  to  this  matter,  that 
the  future  will  be  the  reverse  of  the  past,  or 
out  of  analogy  with  it ;  or  that  the  past  mis- 
leads and  deceives  men  as  to  the  future  ?  No 
conceivable  presumption  against  any  prophecy 
now  unfulfilled  can  be  so  extreme  as  was  that 
against  the  incarnation  and  the  death  of  the 
Messiah,  who,  though  the  Son  of  Man,  was 
also  the  Son  of  God.  But  the  incarnation 
,  and  the  death  have  taken  place.     They  have. 


The  First  Coming.  19 


their  record  as  undeniable,  unexampled,  ever- 
lasting realities.     The  Messiah  was  born,  and 
He  died.      As  certainly  He  will  triumph  and    ,  x^        . 
gloriously  reign.    J^,-  ^^^oM^p^  ^^  -  ^ 

t*  CLr\A   ■m\\\\   net    C^\\     rrlr»rir«nc  nam**  t 


God  with  us!  Oh,  glorious  name  ! 
Let  it  shine  in  endless  fame  ; 
God  and  man  in  Christ  unite ; 
Oh  !  mysterious  depth  and  height! 

God  with  us!  the  Eternal  Son, 
Took  our  soul,  our  flesh,  our  bone; 
Now,  ye  saints,  His  grace  admire, 
Swell  the  song  with  holy  fire. 

God  with  us!  but  tainted  not 
With  the  first  transgressor's  blot; 
Yet  He  did  our  sins  sustain. 
Bear  the  guilt,  the  curse,  the  pain. 

God  with  us!    Oh,  wondrous  grace! 
Lo!  we  see  Him  face  to  face, 
Now,  Immanuel  we  may  sing. 
Gracious  Saviour,  glorious  King!  " 


THE  COMING  AGAIN. 


THE    COMING  AGAIN. 


«»» 


"  Unto  the7n  that  look  for  Him  shall  He  appear  the  second 
time,  without  sin,  unto  salvation" — Heb.  9 :  28. 


"  On  His  shoulder  He  shall  bear 
Power  and  majesty;  and  wear 
On  His  vesture  and  His  thigh, 
Names  most  awful,  names  most  high. 

Wonderful  in  counsel  He; 

Christ,  the  Incarnate  Deity; 

Sire  of  Ages,  ne'er  to  cease. 

King  of  Kings,  and  Prince  of  Peace." 


^  I  nnHE  great  Hope  set  before  men  in  the 
^  New  Testament  is  the  coming  again  of 
the  Messiah ;  or,  using  the  Greek  form  of 
the  word  —  The  Christ.  The  two  words  are 
one  in  meaning,  and  denote  in  the  Scriptures 
the  same  person.      The  Messiah  of   the  law      y 


24  The  Blessed  Hope. 

and  the  prophets  is  the  Jesus  Christ  of  the 
evangelists  and  the  apostles.  Paul,  therefore, 
upon  his  conversion,  preached  Jesus,  that  He 
is  the  Son  of  God ;  that  the  Messiah  must 
needs  die  and  rise  again  ;  and  that  Jesus  is 
He.  So  far  as  the  person  is  concerned,  all 
that  the  Old  Testament  made  known  as  to 
the  then  coming  One  has  its  realization  in 
Him  who  was  born  in  Bethlehem  of  Judea. 
Having  sanctified  infancy  and  childhood  by- 
being  Himself  an  infant  and  a  child ;  hav~ 
ing  then  been  inaugurated  in  His  public  office 
and  work  as  the  Messiah,  by  the  descent 
upon  Him  of  the  Spirit  as  a  dove  at  the  Jor-^ 
dan,  and  by  the  voice  from  the  heavenly  glory, 
saying,  "  This  is  my  beloved  Son,  in  whom  I 
am  well  pleased,  hear  ye  Him;"  having  also 
overcome  in  that  dire  temptation,  to  which 
as  the  second  Adam,  He  was  subjected  at  the 
outset  of  His  course;  having,  moreover,  shed 
the  true  light  upon  men  by  means  of  His 
simple  yet  marvellous  teachings  of  grace  and 
truth,  and  set  before  them  the  one  perfect  ex~ 


The  Coining  Again.  25- 

ample  of  a  perfect  life ;  having  likewise, 
through  the  Eternal  Spirit,  offered  Himself 
on  Calvary  without  spot  unto  "God,  the  ap- 
pointed sacrifice  for  the  sins  of  men,  and  come 
forth  alive  again  from  the  grave  where  weep- 
ing love  laid  Him,  He  ascended  from  the 
Mount  of  Olives,  in  divine  array,  to  the  glori- 
ous high  throne  of  the  Father.  From  thence 
He  now  exercises,  invisibly  to  us,  supreme  and 
universal  dominion  ;  for  "  The  Lord  said  unto- 
my  Lord,  sit  Thou  at  my  right  hand  until  I 
make  thine  enemies  thy  footstool."  His  next 
great  Messianic  manifestation  is  to  be  His 
return  from  that  throne  to  this  world,  in 
glory  and  for  judgment. 

ANCIENT    INTIMATIONS. 

In  the  visions  of  the  prophets,  as  already 
noted,  the  great  events  connected  with  the 
Messiah  appeared  to  be  grouped,  having  their 
place  or  time  near  together.  Those  which 
were  the  most  remote  crowded  close  upon 
those  which  were  nearest.      It  Is  certain,  how- 


"26  The  blessed  Hope. 

ever,  that  the  saintly  ones  of  the  former  dis- 
pensations were  not  without  the  essential 
truth.  All  the  great  characteristics  of  the 
two  comings  they  had  in  clear  view ;  they  did 
not  have  the  true  and  full  perspective.  They 
saw  the  sufferings  and  they  saw  the  glory ; 
they  did  not  see  the  momentous  and  pro- 
longed interval  between  them.  They  had  the 
precious  substance  of  the  truth,  without  its 
chronology ;  we  have  the  chronology  and  the 
substance.  It  cannot  be  without  interest  or 
spiritual  use  to  mark  how  from  the  beginning 
the  second  coming  of  the  Messiah  has  been 
an  essential  part  of  the  faith  once  for  all  de- 
livered to  the  saints.  Like  a  line  of  living 
light,  it  has  shone  across  the  ages. 

BEFORE    THE    FLOOD. 

Go  back  to  Eden.  While  Adam  and  Eve 
yet  linger  there,  note  that  germinal  promise. 
•**  He  shall  bruise  thy  head,"  said  the  Lord  God 
to  the  serpent;  i.e.,  in  the  dread  conflict  now 
begun  He  shall  subject  thee  to  utter  and  end- 


The  Coming  Again.  27 

less  overthrow.  The  Lord  has  come  once  on 
the  wings  of  love,  and  returned  again  to  his 
Fathers  side ;  but  this  conflict  is  still  in  pro- 
gress ;  this  victory  is  yet  in  the  womb  of  the 
future.  The  battle  will  be  ended  and  the  vic- 
tory forever  won  only  when  the  Lord  shall 
again  come  in  robes  of  judgment.  (Gen.  3  :  15). 
Hearken  also  to  Enoch,  the  seventh  from 
Adam.  What  startling  words  he  pours  forth 
on  the  ears  of  his  generation.  "  Behold,"  he 
cries,  "  the  Lord  cometh  with  ten  thousand  of 
his  saints  to  execute  judgment  on  all  the  un- 
godly, and  to  convince  all  that  are  ungodly 
among  them  of  all  their  ungodly  deeds  which 
they  have  ungodly  committed,  and  of  all  their 
hard  speeches  which  ungodly  sinners  have 
spoken  against  Him."  This  was  not  fulfilled  by 
the  flood.  The  Lord  did  not  then  come  with 
myriads  of  His  saints.  Nor  was  it  fulfilled  by 
the  birth  in  Bethlehem.  Rejoicing  angels  were 
indeed  there,  but  the  Lord  did  not  then  come 
in  judgment.  He  came  to  seek  and  to  save  the 
lost.     The  eye  of  Enoch  was  fixed  upon  the 


28  The  Blessed  Hope. 

second  coming:  "When  the  Lord  Jesus  shall 
be  revealed  from  heaven,  with  His  mighty 
angels,  in  flaming  fire,  taking  vengeance."  So 
"  Jude,  the  servant  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  the 
brother  of  James,"  certifies ;  and  he  therefore 
makes  use  of  this  prophecy  to  admonish  all 
the  ungodly  now,  "  who  turn  the  grace  of  God 
into  lasclviousness,  and  deny  the  only  Lord 
God,  and  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ." 

TO    THE    PATRIARCHS. 

Come  down  the  interval  from  Enoch  to 
Abraham.  Time  and  again  he  heard  the 
voice  of  Jehovah,  addressing  to  him  words  of 
counsel  or  of  promise.  Time  and  again  he 
saw  the  Angel  of  Jehovah,  in  visible  form 
and  act.  On  some  occasion,  when  or  how 
is  not  revealed,  he  also  saw  the  day  of 
Christ.  Our  most  gracious  Saviour  affirms  it. 
What  day  of  Christ.?  Perhaps  the  words 
were  meant  to  cover  the  whole  period  bounded 
by  the  two  comings.  It  is  observable,  how- 
ever, that  in  the  usage  of  the  New  Testament 


The  Coming  Again.  29 

the  day  of  Christ  denotes,  not  the  day  of  His 
weakness,  but  of  His  power;  not  the  day  of 
His  sorrow,  but  of  His  joy  ;  not  the  day  of 
His  deep  suffering  and  shame,  when  men 
mocked  at  Him,  but  of  His  glorious  manifesta- 
tion, when  they  will  cry,  "  Crown  Him  !"  And 
most  certain  it  seems  that  the  vision  of  the 
patriarch  embraced  that  still  future  time  when 
this  vast  promise  shall  reach  its  fulfilment : 
"In  thy  seed  shall  all  the  nations  of  the  earth 
be  blessed,  because  thou  hast  heard  my  voice." 
(i  Cor.  1:9;  Phil.  I  :  10;  Gen.  22  :   18). 

From  Beersheba  cross  the  desert  into  Egypt. 
The  aged  Jacob  is  there,  not  only  to  see 
and  be  cared  for  by  his  long-mourned  Joseph, 
but,  also,  in  the  purpose  of  God,  to  die.  The 
mortal  hour  is  visibly  at  hand.  His  sons 
gather  at  his  couch.  What  gleams  from  above 
lighten  that  home  in  Goshen,  and  turn  the 
death-scene  into  one  of  glory.  What  an  apoca- 
lypse of  things  to  come  touching  the  tribes  of 
Israel;  and  especially  touching  the  promised 
seed  !     The  sceptre  and  the  law,  he  cries,  will 


30  The  Blessed  Hope, 


linger  in  Judah  until  Shiloh  comes.  This  was 
fulfilled  at  the  incarnation.  But  centuries  be- 
yond this  pass  before  the  dying  seer.  Far 
down  the  track  of  time  he  sees  the  Redeemer 
— not  crucified,  but  enthroned  by  the  nations. 
This  world-wide  obedience  ;  this  reverent  and 
adoring  homage  are  yet  in  the  future. 

IN    THE    PSALMS. 

Listen  also  to  David,  the  son  of  Jesse — the 
man  who  was  raised  up  on  high,  the  anointed 
of  the  God  of  Jacob  and  the  sweet  Psalmist 
of  Israel.  Looking  on  Calvary,  and  personat- 
ing the  Messiah,  hear  him  cry : 

"  The  dogs  have  compassed  me. 
The  assembly  of  the  wicked  have  enclosed  me. 
They  pierced  my  hands  and  my  feet. 
I  may  tell  all  my  bones. 
They  look  and  stare  upon  me. 
They  part  my  garments  among  them, 
And  cast  lots  upon  my  vesture."  (Psalms  22  :  16-18). 

Behold,  however,  another  scene  : 

"  Why  do  the  heathen  rage, 
And  the  people  imagine  a  vain  thing  ? 
The  kings  of  the  earth  set  themselves, 


The  Coming  Again.  31 

And  the  rulers  take  counsel  together, 

Against  the  Lord,  and  against  His  Anointed,  saying: 

Let  us  break  their  bands  asunder, 

And  cast  away  their  cords  from  us. 

He  that  sitteth  in  the  heavens  shall  laugh ; 

The  Lord  shall  have  them  in  derision, 

Then  shall  He  speak  unto  them  in  His  wrath, 

And  vex  them  in  His  sore  displeasure. 

Yet  have  I  set  my  King  upon  my  holy  hill  of  Zion. 

I  will  declare  the  decree, 

The  Lord  hath  said  unto  me,  thou  art  my  Son ; 

This  day  have  I  begotten  Thee. 

Ask  of  me  and  I  shall  give  thee  the  heathen  for 

thine  inheritance. 
And  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  earth  for  thy  possession.. 
Thou  shalt  break  them  with  a  rod  of  iron  ; 
Thou  shalt  dash  them  in  pieces  like  a  potter's  vessel. 

(Psalms  2 :  1-9). 

And  when  this  work  of  judgment  Is   past^ 
Behold  the  King ! 

"  He  shall  have  dominion  from  sea  to  sea. 

And  from  the  river  unto  the  ends  of  the  earth. 

They  that  dwell  in  the  wilderness  shall  bow  before  Him  ; 

And  His  enemies  shall  lick  the  dust. 

The  kings  of  Tarshish  and  of  the  Isles  shall  bring  presents, 

Yea,  all  kings  shall  bow  down  before  Him. 

All  nations  shall  serve  him." 
"  His  name  shall  endure  forever. 

His  name  shall  be  continued  as  long  as  the  sun ; 

All  men  shall  be  blessed  in  Him; 

All  nations  shall  call  Him  blessed."  (Psalms  72  :  16-18). 


UKIVBRSIT 


32  The  Blessed  Hope. 

THROUGHOUT    THE    PROPHETS. 

Where  can  we  find  grander  themes  or  sub- 
limer  strains  than  in  the  writings  of  those  ex- 
traordinary men  the  Hebrew  prophets  ?  Nay, 
in  all  literature  besides,  where  are  their  equals 
for  thoughts  that  breathe  and  words  that 
burn  ?  Not  fable,  not  fiction,  not  the  things 
which  are  seen  and  temporal,  engage  and  en- 
gross them.  Their  sphere  of  mental  sight  and 
foresight  is  within  the  real ;  the  moral  and 
spiritual ;  the  eternal.  They  tell  of  truth  and 
righteousness  ;  of  sin  and  judgment ;  of  the 
divine  counsels  and  acts ;  of  the  everlasting 
verities.  Consult  their  pages  with  reference 
especially  to  the  coming  One.  What  surpass- 
ing scenes  !  what  contrasts  of  character  and 
condition  !  what  intermingling  of  lights  and 
shades  !    Here  what  gloom  !  there  what  glory  ! 

ISAIAH. 

Turn  to  Isaiah  the  son  of  Amoz ;  whose 
lips  one  of  the  cherubim  touched  with  the  liv- 
ing coal  from  off  the  altar. 


The  First  Coming.  33 

He  set  forth  the  humiHatlon  of  the  Messiah, 
with  the  fulness  and  vividness  almost  of  the 
Gospels.  He  saw  Him  as  a  child  born  ;  as  a 
tender  plant  out  of  dry  ground,  without  form 
or  comeliness  ;  His  visage  was  so  marred  more 
than  any  man  ;  and  His  form  more  than  the 
sons  of  men.  He  saw  Him  despised  and  re- 
jected by  those  whom  He  came  to  save ;  a 
man  of  sorrows  and  familiar  with  grief; 
wounded  for  our  transgressions,  and  bruised 
for  our  iniquities  ;  bearing  thus  that  moun- 
tain-like burden  which  Jehovah  laid  upon  Him. 
He  saw  Him  taken  from  prison  and  from 
judgment ;  brought  as  a  lamb  to  the  slaughter; 
cut  off  out  of  the  land  of  the  living,  and  hav- 
ing His  grave  with  the  wicked,  and  with  the 
rich  in  His  death.  All  this  passed  before  the 
vision  of  the  prophet ;  and  all  this  became 
history  at  the  first  coming. 

But,  note  now  another  scene.  Blending 
with  this  picture,  or  gleaming  across  its  back- 
ground, what  a  strange  contrast.  The  just 
now    oppressed    and    slain   One,  becomes  a 

A, 


34  The  Blessed  Hope. 

mighty  King.  He  puts  on  righteousness  as  a 
breast-plate  and  an  helmet  of  salvation  upon 
His  head.  He  is  glorious  in  His  apparel  and  " 
travels  in  the  greatness  of  His  strength.  He 
treads  the  wine-press  alone,  and  of  the  people 
there  are  none  with  Him.  He  treads  them  in 
His  anger,  and  tramples  them  in  His  fury,  and 
their  blood  is  sprinkled  upon  all  His  raiment. 
The  day  of  vengeance  is  in  His  heart,  and  the 
year  of  His  redeemed  is  come.  Out  of  Zion 
goes  forth  the  law,  and  the  Word  of  the  Lord 
from  Jerusalem.  The  mountain  of  the  Lord's 
house  is  established  in  the  top  of  the  moun- 
tains, and  exalted  among  the  hills,  and  all  the 
nations  flow  unto  it.  The  moon  is  confounded 
and  the  sun  is  ashamed  when  the  Lord  of  Hosts 
reigns  in  Mount  Zion,  and  before  His  ancients 
gloriously.  Can  there  be  a  doubt  that  all  this 
is  to  be  realized  at  the  second  coming  }  (Isaiah 
53:1-9;    32  :  I  ;  59  :  1 7  ;  63  :  1-4  ;  2  :  2,  3  ;  24  : 

23.) 


The  Coming  Again.  36 

JEREMIAH. 

Jeremiah  was  the  prophet  of  sorrow.  His 
heart  was  broken  within  him,  and  his  eyes  ran 
down  with  tears  because  of  the  sins  of  his 
people,  and  the  fearful  desolation  about  to 
overwhelm  them.  His  prophecies  resound 
with  no  exulting  joy  in  view  of  the  first  com- 
ing of  the  Messiah.  He  glances  indeed  at 
that  scene  in  Ramah,  and  weeps  aloud  with 
Rachel  weeping  for  her  children,  and  would 
not  be  comforted,  because  each  was  not ;  and 
then  his  vision  sweeps  down  those  long  centu- 
ries, still  in  progress,  of  the  dispersion  and 
affliction  of  Israel  and  Judah.  Were  there 
ever  sights  more  sad  and  wofuLf^  These  cen- 
turies do,  indeed,  at  length  end ;  and  the 
prophet  sees  and  hails  the  Divine  Restorer. 
His  plaintive  harp  vibrates  with  a  song  of  glad- 
ness.   Hear  it. 

"  Behold  the  days  come  saith  the  Lord,  that 
I  will  raise  unto  David  a  righteous  branch,  and 
a  king  shall  reign  and  prosper,  and  shall  exe- 


36  The  Blessed  Hope. 

cute  judgment  in  the  earth.  In  His  day  Judah 
shall  be  saved,  and  Israel  shall  dwell  safely  ;  and 
this  is  His  name  whereby  He  shall  be  called, 
The  Lord  our  righteousness.  Therefore,  be- 
hold, the  days  come,  saith  the  Lord,  that  they 
shall  no  more  say,  the  Lord  liveth  which 
brought  up  the  children  of  Israel  out  of  Egypt ; 
but,  the  Lord  liveth  which  brought  up  and 
which  led  the  seed  of  the  house  of  Israel,  out 
of  the  North  country;  and  from  all  the  coun- 
tries whither  I  had  driven  them  ;  and  they 
shall  dwell  in  their  own  land."     (Jer.  31  :   15  ; 

23-  5-8;  ZZ  :   14-^7-) 

Mark  the   terms   of  this   prophecy.      They 

point  as  with  a  sunbeam  to  the  Messiah  in  the 
day  of  His  regal  power.  The  facts  of  history 
compel  us  to  the  future  for  its  fulfilment.  Is 
the  Messiah  now  a  King  ?  So  He  is,  but  in- 
visibly to  men,  and  disowned  and  rejected  by 
them.  Was  there  a  return  from  Babylon  1 
So  there  was  ;  but,  at  best,  it  was  partial,  and 
not  to  be  compared  with  the  exodus  from 
Egypt,  in  numbers,  or  in    the   manifestations 


The   Coming  Again.  37 


of  Jehovah's  grace  and  might.  Did  the  Mes- 
siah come  by  incarnation  at  Bethlehem  ?  So 
He  did  ;  but,  then  Judah  was  not  saved,  nor 
did  Israel  dwell  safely.  They  were  over- 
shadowed and  oppressed  by  the  all-crushing 
power  of  Rome.  The  times  of  the  Gentiles 
had  begun  their  course.  Through  all  the  cen- 
turies since,  Jerusalem  has  been  trodden  down 
of  the  Gentiles,  and  the  Jews  have  been  scat- 
tered over  all  the  earth.  It  will  continue  to 
be  so,  both  as  to  the  Holy  City,  and  the  cove- 
nant land  and  people,  until  the  times  of  the 
Gentiles  are  fulfilled.     (Luke  21  :  24.) 


EZEKIEL. 


Among  the  captives  in  Babylon,  by  the 
river  of  Chebar,  was  Ezekiel,  a  priest,  the  son 
of  Buzi.  Though  later  in  the  prophetic  office 
than  Jeremiah,  he  was  like  him  deeply  moved 
by  the  sins  and  the  doom  of  his  people.  His 
visions  of  God,  unique  in  form  and  largely 
impressed  by  the  scenes  around  him,  embrace 
in  their  reach  some  of  the  vast  things  of  the 


38  The  Blessed  Hope. 


future.  Plainly  there  fell  upon  his  eye  the 
light  of  the  two  comings.  He  saw  the  high- 
est branch  of  the  highest  cedar  —  a  tender 
one — planted  in  the  mountain  of  the  height 
of  Israel.  He  also  saw  the  diadem  taken  from 
that  profane  and  wicked  prince,  whose  day 
was  even  then  come,  and  after  mighty  over- 
turnings,  given  to  Him  whose  right  it  is.  He 
saw,  moreover,  not  only  a  restoration  from 
Babylon,  but  the  restoration  of  the  outcasts 
of  Israel,  and  of  the  dispersed  of  Judah,  out 
of  all  the  countries  where  they. are  scattered; 
when  they  shall  no  more  be  two  nations,  but 
one ;  and  one  king  shall  be  to  them  all ;  and 
David  shall  be  their  king  ;  and  they  shall  walk 
in  the  statutes  and  judgments  of  the  Lord 
their  God,  and  do  them  ;  and  He  will  make  a 
covenant  of  peace  with  them,  an  everlasting 
covenant;  and  He  will  place  them  and  multi- 
ply them,  and  set  His  sanctuary  in  the  midst 
of  them  forevermore ;  and  God  will  be  their 
God,  and  they  shall  be  His  people  ;  when 
also  this  great  promise  shall  have  its  perfect  ful- 


The  Coming  Again,  39 

filment,  "  Then  will  I  sprinkle  clean  water  upon 
you,  and  ye  shall  be  clean  ;  from  all  your  filthi- 
ness,  and  from  all  your  idols  I  will  cleanse  you. 
A  new  heart  also  I  will  give  you  ;  and  a  new 
spirit  will  I  put  within  you  ;  and  I  will  take 
away  the  stony  heart  out  of  your  flesh,  and  I 
will  give  you  a  heart  of  flesh."  Likewise,  in 
the  visions  of  God,  the  prophet  saw  that  won- 
derful symbolic  temple  into  which  the  glory 
of  the  Lord  came,  by  the  way  of  the  gate 
toward  the  East,  and  the  glory  of  the  Lord 
filled  it ;  and  that  equally  wonderful  symbolic 
city,  whose  name  shall  be  Jehovah  Shammah  ; 
The  Lord  is  there  !  Where,  either  since  or 
before  the  incarnation,  has  all  this  been 
realized  1  Does  it  not  remain  to  bless  and 
glorify  the  future.^  (Ezek.  17:  22-24;  21: 
26  ;  37  :  22-28 ;  39  :  25  ;  43  :  4  ;  48  :  35). 

DANIEL. 

When  we  turn  to  the  man  greatly  beloved, 
illustrious  as  a  statesman  as  well  as  a  prophet, 
intimately  conversant  with  secular  as  well  as 


40  The  Blessed  Hope. 

sacred  affairs,  we  find  most  definite  views  of 
Messiah  the  Prince,  both  in  His  weakness  and 
in  His  power.  Daniel  saw  the  Anointed,  the 
Christ  in  His  first  coming.  He  saw  Him  at 
the  very  crisis  of  His  passion  ;  dying  just  when 
Israel  would  be  expecting  Him  to  reign  ;  cut  off 
by  a  death  of  violence,  not,  indeed,  for  Himself. 
His  death  was  a  substitution  and  an  expiation. 
It  made  an  end  of  sins  for  all  who  put  their 
trust  in  Him.  It  brought  in  for  their  pardon 
and  complete  salvation  a  righteousness,  in  its 
value  without  limit,  and  in  its  duration  without 
end.  But  from  this  astonishing  scene  on  Cal- 
vary the  eye  of  the  prophet  glanced  far  for- 
ward. It  fixed  with  intent  gaze  on  the  most 
distant  future  as  yet  revealed.  Already  the 
throne  of  David  was  fallen  down  with  the  fall 
of  Zedekiah  ;  and  it  was  to  remain  abased  un- 
til the  true  Heir  should  come.  Already  had 
Ezekiel  seen  the  glory  of  the  Lord  depart 
from  the  threshold  of  the  temple,  and  from 
the  midst  of  the  city  ;  and  Jerusalem  was  no 
more  His  dwelling  place.    The  God  of  heaven 


The  Coming  Again.  41 

had  turned  to  the  Gentiles.  He  had  given  to 
Nebuchadnezzar  a  kingdom,  power,  strength 
and  glory.  He  had  appointed  him  as  the  head 
of  those  great  world-powers,  which  should 
continue  for  ages,  and  which  were  symbolized, 
as  to  character  and  succession,  by  a  huge  me- 
tallic image,  shown  to  the  monarch  of  Baby- 
lon in  a  vison  of  the  night.  Gentile  supre- 
macy and  the  times  of  the  Gentiles  began 
with  him.  But  lo  !  this  colossal  image,  sud- 
denly falls.  A  stone  cut  out  of  the  mountain 
without  hands — the  stone  of  Israel,  which 
the  builders  rejected — smites  it,  and  destroys 
it.  Not,  however,  let  it  be  noted,  at  the  first 
coming.  That  was  the  day  of  grace  and 
truth,  of  divine  sorrow  and  measureless  love. 
The  stone  smites  the  image — not  upon  its 
head  of  gold  ;  nor  upon  its  breast  and  arms  of 
silver;  nor  upon  its  belly  and  thighs  of  brass  ; 
nor  upon  its  legs  of  iron  ;  but  upon  its  feet  of 
iron  and  clay.  It  smites  it  therefore  when 
the  fourth  kingdom  symbolized  in  the  image 
has  reached  its  last  form  and  been  divided  in- 


42  The  Blessed  Hope. 


to  ten  kingdoms.  In  the  days  of  these  king- 
doms, and  as  we  now  know,  in  their  last  days, 
will  the  stone  that  smites  them,  break  them 
in  pieces,  take  their  place,  filling  the  whole 
earth,  and  the  God  of  heaven  set  up  a  king- 
dom that  shall  be  invincible  and  indestructible. 
Moreover,  Daniel  "Beheld,  till  the  thrones 
were  placed,  and  the  Ancient  of  days  did  sit, 
whose  garment  was  white  as  snow,  and  the 
hair  of  His  head  like  wool ;  His  throne  was 
like  the  fiery  flame,  and  his  wheels  as  a  burn- 
ing fire.  A  fiery  stream  Issued  and  came 
forth  from  before  Him  ;  thousand  thousands 
ministered  unto  Him,  and  ten  thousand  times 
ten  thousand  stood  before  Him  ;  the  judg- 
ment was  set  and  the  books  were  opened." 
And  then  "  Behold,  one  like  the  Son  of  Man, 
came  with  the  clouds  of  heaven,  and  came  to 
the  Ancient  of  days,  and  they  brought  Him 
near  before  Him,  and  there  was  given  Him 
-dominion  and  glory,  and  a  kingdom,  that  all 
people,  nations,  and  languages  should  serve 
Him.    His  dominion  is  an  everlasting  dominion. 


The   Coming  Again.  43 

which  shall  not  pass  away;  and  His  kingdom 
that  which  shall  not  be  destroyed."  This 
fatal  smiting  of  the  great  image  ;  this  dread 
judgment  before  the  Ancient  of  days,  this 
glorious  dominion  of  one  like  the  Son  of 
Man,  still  await  historic  realization.  (Ezek. 
lo:  i8  ;    II  :    23  ;  Dan.  9  :   24-26;    2:    31-45; 

THE    MINOR    PROPHETS. 

In  the  minor  prophets  the  essential  facts 
are  the  same.  Many  a  sacred  ray  shoots 
across  their  pages,  revealing  the  Messiah  at 
His  first  coming.  1  hey  set  forth  His  divine 
nature,  and  yet  recognize  him  as  the  Son  of 
David.  They  tell  how  the  nations  will  be 
yearning,  consciously  or  unconsciously  for 
His  advent,  because  of  the  miseries  which  are 
upon  them.  They  point  out  where  He  will 
be  born  and  within  what  period.  They 
announce  a  messenger  to  go  before  Him  to 
prepare  His  way;  and  that  He  himself  will 
suddenly   come   to   His  temple.     They   fore- 


44  The  Blessed  Hope. 


show  His  betrayal  for  thirty  pieces  of  silver, 
and  that  field  of  blood  bought  with  the 
accursed  price.  They  affirm  that  the  sword 
of  Jehovah  will  smite  Him,  though  He  is 
Jehovah's  fellow,  and  that  His  little  ones  will 
be  scattered.  But  they  pass  on  from  the  first 
advent  to  the  second.  They  see  Him  as  a 
Priest  upon  His  throne,  and  bearing  the 
glory ;  as  standing  and  ruling  in  the  majesty 
of  the  Lord  God  ;  as  gathering  all  nations  into 
the  valley  of  Jehosaphat,  and  pleading  with 
them  there  for  His  heritage  ;  as  roaring  out  of 
Zion,  and  uttering  His  voice  from  Jerus- 
alem, and  then,  though  the  earth  and  the 
heavens  shake,  as  being  the  hope  and  the 
strength  of  His  people  ;  as  going  forth  to 
fight  against  the  nations  which  encompass 
Jerusalem  in  array  of  battle  ;  as  standing,  in 
that  day,  upon  the  Mount  of  Olives,  which  is 
before  Jerusalem  on  the  east,  and  which  shall 
then  cleave  in  the  midst  toward  the  east  and 
toward  the  west ;  and  they  connect  these 
stupendous  transactions  with  that   time  when 


The  Coming  Again.  45 

the  Lord  God  shall  come  with  all  His  holy 
ones.  How  certain  is  it,  that  these  prophets 
revealed  amazing  events  not  yet  in  history? 
(Mic.  5  :  2-4  ;  Hag.  2  :  6-9  ;  Zech.  6  :  9-13  ; 
11:   12-14;  13:  7;   14:  3-4;  Mai.  3:   I.) 

THE    NEW    TESTAMENT. 

It  is  not,  however,  until  after  the  first  com- 
ing, and  we  see  in  the  clearer  and  fuller  light 
of  the  New  Testament,  that  we  gain  the  com- 
pleted view  of  the  second  coming.  The  New 
Testament  has  its  living  root,  and  its  majestic 
trunk  and  branches  in  the  Old.  The  Old 
Testament  has  its  rich  and  divine  flower  and 
fruit  in  the  New.  They  are  not  two  separate 
trees  of  life  from  the  heavenly  Paradise  ;  they 
are  one  and  the  same  tree  ;  planted,  and  from 
first  to  last  cultured  and  vivified  by  the  one 
eternal  spirit  of  God.  The  Old  Testament 
foretold  the  Messiah  as  to  come,  and  shad- 
owed forth  the  essential  qualities  of  His  per- 
son, character,  office,  work,  and  kingdom.  In 
the  New  Testament  the  Messianic  prophecy 


46  The  Blessed  Hope. 

culminates  in  visible  and  marvellous  history. 
We  have  the  record  of  the  coming,  and  of 
Him  who  came.  Where  before  there  was 
only  outline,  or,  at  most,  grouping  without 
perspective,  there  are  details,  and  the  true 
relations  and  proportions,  and  clearer  and 
fuller  vision  of  the  yet  future.  It  is  in  this 
light,  therefore,  we  reach  the  truth  in  its  com- 
pleteness, which,  in  its  substance,  was  the 
heritage  of  the  saints  from  the  beginning. 

SEEMING    FAILURE. 

After  a  life  of  about  thirty-three  years 
among  men,  a  life  that  has  no  parallel  for  its 
beneficence,  and  for  its  moral  beauty  and 
power — the  Messiah,  or  Jesus  Christ,  was,  by 
wicked  hands,  crucified  and  slain.  What  an 
astonishing  event!  Instead  of  honor,  men 
covered  Him  with  ignominy.  Instead  of 
power,    He    fell,   apparently   helpless,   before 

■ — > 

His  enemies.  Instead  of  a  world-wide  sceptre 
and  a  glorious  throne,  as  the  prophets  sung, 
He  went  suddenly  to  the  grave,  and  the  grave 


The   Corning  Again.  47 

of  one  charged  with  crime.  What  wonder  if 
the  Scribes  and  Pharisees  exulted  over  His 
death,  and  thought  that  was  the  end  of  Him. 
What  wonder  if  His  Httle  band  of  disciples 
was  utterly  cast  down.  Certainly,  there  was 
this  obvious  alternative ;  either  the  long 
series  of  prophecies  which  went  before  on  the 
Messiah  had  largely  failed,  or  He  must  come 
again.  An  intelligent  faith  would  embrace 
the  latter  conclusion.  To  such  a  faith,  that 
which  had  taken  place,  so  exact  and  amaz- 
ing, would  render  most  certain,  the  complete 
fulfilment  of  that  which  remained.  As  He 
had  come  and  endured  all  the  suffering,  sooner 
or  later  the  glory  must  follow. 

DIVINE    SOLUTION. 

Our  blessed  Lord  gave  intimations  of  this 
truth  at  an  early  period  of  His  ministry. 
From  time  to  time  afterward,  as  the  disciples 
were  able  to  bear  it,  He  made  it  known  to 
them  plainly.  "  Nevertheless,"  He  said, 
"  When  the    Son    of  Man    cometh,  shall    He 


48  The  Blessed  Hope, 

find  faith  on  the  earth  ? "  But  the  Son  of 
Man  was  then  with  them.  His  words,  there- 
fore, implied  that  he  was  to  go  away,  and 
come  again.  Again  He  said,  "  When  the  Son 
of  Man  shall  come  in  His  glory,  and  all  the 
holy  angels  with  him,  then  shall  He  sit  upon 
the  throne  of  His  glory."  (Matt.  25  :  31). 
The  Son  of  Man  was  there  and  then  present, 
but  in  a  most  humble  condition.  His  words 
therefore  teach  that  he  would  come  again  and 
be  known  and  seen  in  His  power  and  glory  as 
a  king.  And  so  again  :  ''  For  the  Son  of  Man 
shall  come  in  the  glory  of  his  Father,  with 
His  angels,  and  then  shall  he  reward  every 
man  according  to  his  works."  (Matt.  16:  27). 
And  still  again  :  "  In  the  regeneration,"  z.  e., 
in  the  new  world  which   is  to  be,  "  When  the 

Son  of  Man  shall  sit  in    the   throne    of  His 
glory,  ye  also  shall  sit  upon    twelve    thrones, 

judging  the  twelve  tribes    of  Israel."     (Matt. 

19:  28.)     Before  the  death  of  our  Lord,  every 

doubt  as  to  this  matter   was  dissipated,   and 

the    disciples   were    looking   forward   to    the 


The  Coming  Again.  49 

second  coming.  When,  therefore,  a  few  days 
before  His  passion.  He  sat  on  the  Mount 
of  Olives  with  the  forsaken  and  doomed 
Jerusalem  in  view,  they  came  to  Him  with 
the  question  :  "  What  shall  be  the  sign  of  thy 
coming;  and  of  the  end  of  the  world?"  In 
reply.  He  uttered  that  momentous  prophecy, 
which  still  stands  as  a  beacon  light  to  the 
Church  and  the  world,  and  in  which  He  again 
declared,  "  Then  shall  appear  the  sign  of  the 
Son  of  Man,  and  then  shall  all  the  tribes  ot 
the  earth  mourn  ;  and  they  shall  see  the  Son 
of  Man  coming  in  the  clouds  of  heaven,  with 
power  and  great  glory."     (Matt.  24:  3-10). 

RESULT. 

It  is  plain  from  all  this  that  there  is  to  be  a 
second  coming  of  the  Lord,  and  that  this  will 
fill  up  all  the  foreshowing  of  prophecy  as  to 
His  kingly  character  and  dominion,  just  as 
His  first  coming  has  filled  up  all  the  foreshow- 
ing of  prophecy  as  to  His  being  a  servant  and 
a  sacrifice.     In  the  divine  order  the  cross  was 


50  The  Blessed  Hope. 

to  be  first ;  and  then,  and  because  of  it,  the 
crown.  This  order  was  a  necessity.  "  Ought 
not  Christ  to  have  suffered  these  things.  He 
said,  and  to  enter  into  His  glory.?"  and  the 
heart  of  those  sad  ones  on  the  way  to  Em- 
maus  burned  within  them  as  they  heard  Him. 
And  so  again,  on  the  evening  of  the  Res- 
surrection  day,  He  said  to  the  eleven  as  they 
were  gathered  together  :  "  These  are  the 
words  which  I  spake  unto  you,  while  I  was 
yet  with  you,  that  all  things  must  be  fulfilled 
which  were  written  in  the  law  of  Moses,  and 
in  the  prophets,  and  in  the  Psalms,  concern- 
ing Me.  Then  opened  He  their  under- 
standing, that  they  might  understand  the 
Scriptures,  and  said  unto  them.  Thus  it  is 
written,  and  thus  it  behoved  Christ  to  suffer, 
and  to  rise  from  the  dead  on  the  third  day." 
See  those  eager  disciples !  How  their  souls 
catch  and  fire  at  the  words :  "  Rise  from 
the  dead  on  the  third  day  ! "  Surely  it  will  be 
to  reign  !  He  will  then  come  in  His  glory  ! 
He   will    then,  by  great   acts  of  power   and 


The  Coming  Again.  51 


judgment,  overwhelm  those  who  just  now 
rejected  and  crucified  Him,  and  establish, 
visibly,  His  mighty  kingdom  !  No,  ye  loving 
and  adoring  ones.  The  time  is  not  yet.  I 
have  died,  and  I  have  come  back  from  the 
dead,  not  now  to  appear  in  My  glory,  but  that 
repentance  and  remission  of  sins  should  be 
preached  In  My  name  among  all  the  nations, 
beginning  at  Jerusalem  !"  There  must  be  an 
interval  of  patience  and  mercy.  There  must 
be  the  offer  everywhere  of  the  blood-bought 
salvation.  There  must  be  the  breaking  down 
of  the  middle  wall  of  partition  which  has 
stood  between  the  Jews  and  Gentiles  for  so 
many  ages.  There  must  be  the  blessed 
ministrations  of  the  Almighty  Spirit,  to  effect 
upon  men  of  all  races  and  all  climes,  the 
gracious  purposes  of  God  in  His  redeeming 
Son.  There  must  be  the  gathering,  along 
successive  generations,  of  that  great  multitude 
which  no  man  can  number,  out  of  all  nations 
and  kindreds,  and  peoples  and  tongues,  to 
stand,   at   length,   as    conquerors,   robed  and 


52  The  Blessed  Hope. 

crowned,  before  the  throne  of  God  and  of  the 
Lamb! 

UNTIL    HE    COME. 

Without  doubt  It  was  a  difficult  thing  for 
the  disciples  to  adjust  their  feelings  to  this 
fuller  revelation.  Their  love  to  the  person  of 
the  Saviour  had  become  most  tender  and 
strong,  how  could  they  then  bear  that  He 
should  go  away  from  them  and  remain  ?  In 
their  most  sacred  beliefs  and  hopes  until  now 
they  had  held  the  suffering  and  the  glory  of 
the  Messiah  to  be  in  close  connection,  how 
could  they  then  without  a  struggle,  give  up 
these  beliefs  and  hopes,  and  see  the  Name 
above  all  Names  still  contemned  and  dis- 
honored among  men  ?  As  the  dreaded  hour 
of  separation  drew  nigh  they  instinctively 
shrank  from  it.  On  the  night  of  the  Last 
Supper  sorrow  filled  their  hearts.  When  at 
the  table  the  divine  Master  said :  "  This  is  My 
body  which  is  given  for  you  ;  do  this  in 
remembrance  of  Me ; "  and  also,  "  This  cup  Is 


The  Coming  Again.  53 

the  New  Testament  in  My  blood,  which  is 
shed  for  many,  for  the  remission  of  sins," 
who  can  conceive  what  thouo^hts  and  feeling-s 
swept  through  their  souls  !  But  in  the  dark- 
ness a  light  arises.  If  the  blessed  One  ordains 
the  Supper  for  a  memorial.  He  also  ordains 
it  for  a  pledge  and  a  prophecy.  If  it  tells 
them  of  His  sacrifice,  it  also  tells  them  of  His 
triumph.  Along  the  coming  time,  it  will  indeed 
point  back  to  Mount  Calvary,  but  it  will  also 
point  forward  to  Mount  Zion.  He  made  it, 
there  and  then,  to  herald  the  hope  of  the 
Church  till  he  come  !  Then  followed  those 
wondrous  discourses.  Did  mortals  ever  before 
listen  to  such  thoughts  and  truths  1  Their 
beauty,  spirit,  power,  must  have  made  that 
upper  room  like  heaven.  To  cheer  them  in 
their  sadness  He  said:  "  I  tell  you  the  truth  ; 
it  is  expedient  for  you  that  I  go  away  ;  for  if 
I  go  not  away  the  Comforter  will  not  come 
unto  you  ;  but,  if  I  depart  I  will  send  Him 
unto  you,  and  when  He  is  come.  He  will 
reprove  the  world  of  sin,  and  of  righteousness, 


54  The  Blessed  Hope. 

and  of  judgment."  "  He  shall  glorify  Me,  for 
He  shall  receive  of  Mine,  and  shall  show  it 
unto  you/'  To  quicken  their  hope,  and  nerve 
them  for  the  coming  labor  and  conflict,  He 
said :  "  Let  not  your  heart  be  troubled ;  ye 
believe  in  God,  believe  also  in  Me.  In  my 
Father's  house  are  many  mansions,  if  it  were 
not  so,  I  would  have  told  you.  I  go  to  pre- 
pare a  place  for  you.  And,  if  I  go  and  pre- 
pare a  place  for  you,  I  will  come  again,  and 
receive  you  unto  Myself,  that  where  I  am, 
there  ye  may  be  also  ! "  Presently,  they  left 
that  sacred  chamber.  They  crossed  over  the 
brook  Cedron.  They  went  into  Gethsemane, 
and  some  of  them  witnessed  the  agony  there. 
On  the  morrow  they  saw  Him  hang  in  pain 
and  death  on  the  tree !  but,  those  stirring 
words,  "  I  will  come  again  !"  sounded  on  like 
a  trumpet.  In  the  Acts;  in  the  Epistles;  in 
the  Apocalypse,  they  ring  out,  at  every  now 
and  then,  as  a  loud  voice  from  heaven,  to 
rouse  and  urge  onward  the  sacramental  host  ; 
and   when  the  Word    of  God  closes    its    last 


The  Coming  Again.     ^  55 


accents  are  the  solemn  cry  of  the  Bridegroom, 
"Surely  I  come  quickly:  Amen!"  with  the 
yearning  response  of  the  Bride,  "  Even  so, 
come,  Lord  Jesus  !" 

"The  Church  has  waited  long 

Her  absent  Lord  to  see ; 
And  still  in  loneliness  she  waits, 

A  friendless  stranger  she. 
Age  after  age  has  gone, 

Sun  after  sun  has  set. 
And  still  in  weeds  of  widowhood, 

She  weeps  a  mourner  yet. 

We  long  to  hear  Thy  voice, 

To  see  Thee,  face  to  face. 
To  share  Thy  crown  and  glory  then. 

As  now  we  share  Thy  grace. 
Should  not  the  loving  Bride 

The  absent  Bridegroom  mourn? 
Should  she  not  wear  the  weeds  of  grief 

Until  her  Lord  return  ? 

The  whole  creation  groans 

And  waits  to  hear  Thy  voice. 
That  shall  restore  her  comeliness 

And  make  her  wastes  rejoice. 
Come,  Lord,  and  wipe  away 

The  curse,  the  sin,  the  stain ; 
Come,  make  this  blighted  world  of  ours 

Thine  own  fair  world  again  !  " 


.iKiP^ 


WHEN  WILL  IT  BE  ? 


WHEN  WILL   IT    BE  ? 


''  Looking  for  that  blessed  hope,  even  the  glorzotis  appear- 
ing of  the  great  God  and  our  Saviour  Jesus  Christ." — 
Tit.  2 :  13. 


"  From  heaven  when  Christ  came  down  of  old, 
He  took  our  nature  poor  and  low ; 
He  wore  no  form  of  angel  mould, 

But  shared  our  weakness  and  our  woe. 

But,  when  He  cometh  back  once  more, 
Then  shall  He  set  His  glorious  throne, 

And  earth  and  heaven  shall  flee  before 
The  face  of  Him  who  sits  thereon. 

O  !  Son  of  God,  in  glory  crowned, 

The  Judge  ordained  of  quick  and  dead ; 

O  !  Son  of  man,  so  pitying  found, 
For  all  the  tears  Thy  people  shed ; 

Be  with  us  in  that  awful  hour. 

And  by  Thy  crown  and  by  Thy  grave, 

By  all  Thy  love  and  all  Thy  power. 
In  that  great  day  of  judgment,  save  !  " 


A  GLANCE  at  the  circumstances  which 
-^  ^  will  attend  and  signalize  the  second 
coming   of  the    Lord,  may  fitly  precede    the 


60  The  Blessed  Hope. 

consideration  of  its  time.  They  will  be  seen 
to  be,  as  set  forth  by  the  Spirit  of  God 
through  the  evangelists  and  the  apostles, 
ineffably  grand  and  impressive. 

THE    SAME   JESUS. 

Observe  the  identity  of  the  Person.  It  is 
He  who  was  born  in  Bethlehem  ;  who  died  on 
Calvary ;  and  who  ascended  from  the  Mount 
of  Olives.  "  This  same  Jesus,"  said  the  angelic 
ones,  "  which  is  taken  up  from  you  into  heaven, 
shall  so  come,  in  like  manner  as  ye  have  seen 
Him  go  into  heaven."     (Acts  i  :   ii). 

VISIBLY. 

He  will  come  visibly.  "  Behold,  He  cometh 
with  clouds,  and  every  eye  shall  see  him ;  and 
they  also  which  pierced  Him ;  and  all  the 
kindreds  of  the  earth  shall  wail  because  of 
Him.     Even  so.     Amen."     (Rev.  i  :  7). 

SUDDENLY. 

He  will  come  suddenly,  when  men  do  not 
expect  Him.     "  For,  as  the  lightning  cometh 


When  will  it  lef  61 

out  of  the  east  and  shineth  even  unto  the 
west,  so  shall  also  the  coming  of  the  Son  of 
Man  be."  "  And  as  it  was  in  the  days  that 
were  before  the  flood,  they  were  eating  and 
drinking,  marrying  and  giving  in  marriage, 
until  the  day  that  Noah  entered  the  ark,  and 
knew  not  until  the  flood  came,  and  took  them 
all  away,  so  shall  also  the  coming  of  the 
Son  of  Man  be."     (Matt.  24:  27-37-39). 

IN    GLORY. 

He  will  come  in  most  glorious  array. 
"  Hereafter,  ye  shall  see  the  Son  of  Man 
sitting  on  the  right  hand  of  power,  and 
coming  in  the  clouds  of  heaven."  "  When 
the  Son  of  Man  shall  come  in  His  glory,  and 
all  the  holy  angels  with  Him,  then  shall  He 
sit  upon  the  throne  of  His  glory."  "  For  the 
Son  of  Man  shall  come  in  the  glory  of  his 
Father,  with  His  angels,  and  then  He  shall 
reward  every  man  according  to  his  works." 
"  And  He  shall  send  forth  His  angels  with  a 
great   sound    of    a   trumpet,    and   they   shall 


62  The  Blessed  Hope. 

gather  His  elect  from  the  four  winds,  from 
one  end  of  heaven  to  the  other."  (Matt.  17  : 
27;  24:  31  ;  25:  31  ;  26:  64). 

WITH    RESURRECTION    POWER. 

He  will  come  exercising  His  divine  power 
of  resurrection.  "The  Lord  himself  shall 
descend  from  heaven  with  a  shout ;  with  the 
voice  of  the  archangel,  and  with  the  trump  of 
God  ;  and  the  dead  in  Christ  shall  rise  first," 
"they  that  are  Christ's  at  His  coming.'^ 
"  Then  we  which  are  alive  and  remain  " — 
"  changed  in  a  moment,  in  the  twinkling  of 
an  eye,  at  the  last  trump  " — "  shall  be  caught 
up  together  with  them  to  meet  the  Lord  in 
the  air,  and  so  shall  we  ever  be  with  the 
Lord."  (i  Cor.  15:  23,  51;  i  Thess.  4: 
16-17). 

FOR   JUDGMENT. 

He  will  come  as  the  righteous  Judge  and 
King,  "  to  give  every  man  according  as  his 
work   shall    be ; "   "  tribulation    to    them   that 


When  will  it  he  f  63 


trouble  you  ;  and  to  you  who  are  troubled 
rest  with  us,  when  the  Lord  Jesus  shall  be 
revealed  from  heaven,  with  His  mighty 
angels,  in  flaming  fire,  taking  vengeance  on 
them  that  know  not  God,  and  that  obey  not 
the  Gospel  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  who 
shall  be  punished  with  everlasting  destruction 
from  the  presence  of  the  Lord  and  from  the 
glory  of  His  power,  when  He  shall  come  to  be 
glorified  in  His  saints,  and  to  be  admired  in 
all  them  that  believe.''  (Rev.  22:  12; 
2  Thes.  6  :  6-10). 

How  overpowering  will  be  these  scenes ! 
What  an  infinite  contrast  between  them  and 
those  of  the  first  coming !  Will  not  every 
beholder  be  impelled  to  cry — 

"  Can  this  be  He  !  once  wont  to  stray 
A  pilgrim  on  the  world's  highway  ; 
By  power  opprest,  and  mocked  by  pride  ; 
The  Nazarene  !  the  Crucified  !  " 

THE    TIME. 

When   will    the    Lord    thus   come    again  ? 
It    is   an    inquiry,  not   only   natural,  but   also 


64  The  Blessed  Hope. 

becoming  and  right.  A  true  interest  in  the 
^reat  event  itself  will  inevitably  awaken  a  like 
interest  as  to  its  time.  Those  holy  men  of 
God,  therefore,  who  spake  as  they  were 
moved  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  searched 
diligently,  even  as  those  who  search  for 
gold,  to  learn  what  time,  as  well  as  what 
manner  of  time,  the  Spirit  of  Christ  which 
was  in  them  did  signify,  when  it  testified 
beforehand  the  sufferings  of  Christ,  and  the 
glory  that  should  follow,  (i  Pet.  i  :  ii.) 
They  searched,  indeed,  within  the  limits  of 
the  divine  revelation.  For  any  mortal  to 
pass  beyond  those  limits  is  as  irreverent 
as  it  is  in  vain. 

ABSOLUTE    TIME. 

Of  the  absolute  time  of  the  second  com- 
ing we  know  nothing.  God  has  revealed  * 
nothing.  The  times  and  the  seasons  are  in 
His  own  power.  Almost  at  the  close  of  His 
ministry  on  the  earth,  the  Saviour  said :  "  Of 
that  day  and  that  hour  knoweth   no  man ;  no, 


WJien  will  it  he  f  65 


not  the  angels  which  are  in  heaven ;  neither 
the  Son";  z.  e.,  in  His  character  and  office  as 
the  divine-human  Mediator,  "  but  the  Father." 
This  is  still  true  of  all  men.  It  is  probably- 
still  true  of  all  angels.  If  the  Son  has  now 
this  knowledge,  He  has  not  revealed  it.  In 
the  Gospels,  in  the  Acts,  and  in  the  Epistles, 
all  of  which  have  been  given  to  the  Church 
since  He  spoke  these  words,  and  all  of  which 
shed  a  fuller  light  than  before  shone  on  the 
events  to  come,  there  is  no  exact  determina- 
tion of  the  time.  Nor  from  the  Apocalypse, 
that  wondrous  book,  which  closes  the  super- 
natural record,  and  "which  God  gave  unto 
Jesus  Christ,  to  show  unto  His  servants 
things  which  must  shortly  come  to  pass,"  can 
we  learn  at  what  hour  or  on  what  day  the 
Son  of  Man  will  come. 

RELATIVE    TIME. 

Of  the  relative  time,  however,  of  the 
second  coming,  the  Church  has  knowledge. 
It  has  pleased  the  Father  to  cast  some  of  the 

6 


66  The  Blessed  Hope. 

rays  of  that  light  which  proceeds  from  His 
throne,  upon,  at  least,  its  place  in  the  order  of 
the  divine  counsels.  We  know  that  the  Son 
of  Man  came  in  the  manner  and  at  the  time 
foretold  by  the  prophets  ;  and  that  men  did 
unto  Him  whatsoever  they  would.  We  know 
that  we  are  living  in  the  last  days  and  under 
the  immediate  ministration  of  the  Holy 
Spirit.  We  know  that  these  days  are  now 
far  on  in  their  course,  so  that,  on  the  scale  of 
divine,  and  probably,  of  human  measurement, 
the  end  is  nigh.  We  know  that  the  next 
great  predicted  event  in  the  unfolding  future, 
and  relative  to  the  Messianic  kingdom,  is 
the  manifestation  of  the  Son  of  God  in  glory 
and  to  reign. 

THE    MILLENNIUM. 

Some,  indeed,  will  ask,  must  not  the  millen- 
nium intervene?  The  Scriptures  do  not 
teach  that  it  must ;  but,  apparently  they  teach 
the  reverse.  What  is  the  millennium  }  The 
word  itself   Is  made  up   of  two  Latin  words, 


When  will  it  he?  67 

and  means,  literally,  a  thousand  years.  A 
thousand  years  are  a  millennium.  In  Rev. 
20:  1-7,  the  beloved  John  uses  this  word  in  its 
Greek  form  to  denote  a  most  signal  and  glori- 
ous period  in  the  history  of  the  Church  to  be 
realized  in  the  future.  If  we  read  his  state- 
ments, using  the  word  millennium,  instead  of 
translating  it,  it  may  serve  to  render  more 
clear  and  definite  our  views  of  His  meaning. 

"  And  I  saw  an  angel  come  down  from 
heaven,  having  the  key  of  the  bottomless  pit 
and  a  great  chain  in  his  hand.  And  he  laid 
hold  on  the  dragon,  that  old  serpent,  which 
is  the  Devil  and  Satan  and  bound  him  a 
millennium,  and  cast  him  into  the  bottomless 
pit,  and  shut  him  up,  and  set  a  seal  upon  him, 
that  he  should  deceive  the  nations  no  more 
till  the  millennium  should  be  fulfilled,  and 
after  that,  he  must  be  loosed  a  little  season. 
And  I  saw  thrones,  and  they  sat  upon  them, 
and  judgment  was  given  unto  them  ;  and  I 
saw  the  souls  of  them  that  were  beheaded  for 
the  witness  of  Jesus,  and   for   the    Word   of 


68  The  Blessed  Hope. 

God,  and  which  had  not  worshipped  the  beast, 
neither  His  image,  neither  had  received  his 
mark  upon  their  foreheads,  or  in  their  hands  ; 
and  they  lived  and  reigned  with  Christ  a 
millennium.  But,  the  rest  of  the  dead  lived 
not  again  until  the  millennium  was  finished. 
This  is  the  first  resurrection.  Blessed  and 
holy  is  he  that  hath  part  in  the  first  resurrec- 
tion ;  on  such  the  second  death  hath  no  power, 
but  they  shall  be  priests  of  God,  and  of  Christ, 
and  shall  reign  with  Him  a  millennium.  And 
when  the  millennium  is  expired  Satan  shall  be 
loosed  out  of  his  prison." 

ANALYSIS. 

Analysis  of  this  interesting  Scripture  shows 
its  essential  points  to  be  these,  viz  : 

1.  The  future  embosoms  a  definite  and  most 
eminent  period  which  is  here  called  the  mil- 
lennium. 

2.  At  the  beginning  of  the  millennium,  Satan 
is  to  be  bound,  cast  into  the  abyss  and  shut 


When  will  it  he?  *  69 

up,  so  that  he  can  deceive  the  nations  no  more, 
until  the  millennium  is  past. 

3.  In  connection  with  the  binding  and  im- 
prisonment of  Satan,  the  saintly  dead,  or  the 
dead  in  Christ,  are  to  live  again.  Their  res- 
urrection is  the  first  resurrection,  or  the  resur- 
rection of  the  just,  or  the  resurrection  unto 
life.  These  risen  dead  are  blessed  and  holy, 
and  as  priests  of  God  and  of  Christ,  they  are 
to  reign  with  Him  during  the  millennium. 

4.  The  rest  of  the  dead,  z.  e.,  those  who  are 
not  dead  in  Christ,  will  not  then  live  again. 
They  will  have  no  part  in  the  first  resurrection. 
They  sleep  on  in  their  graves,  and  over  them 
the  second  death  will  have  power. 

5.  At  the  close  of  the  millennium,  Satan  is 
to  be  let  loose  again  for  a  little  season. 

Such  is  the  origin  of  the  term  millennium. 
Such  is  the  inspired  view  of  the  notable  period 
which  it  designates.  Very  naturally  and  doubt- 
less with  truth,  those  glowing  descriptions 
which  the  Scriptures  elsewhere  give  of  the 
future  bliss  and  glory  of  the  Church  on  earth, 


^^  09  TBTR        ^ 

'UHI7BESITY; 


70  The  Blessed  Hope. 

are  referred  by  most  to  the  same  period,  and 
the  word  millennium  is  used  to  express  their 
immense  import. 

INSPIRED    DESCRIPTIONS. 

In  this  view  of  the  Apocalypse,  the  casting 
down  and  repression  of  Satan,  the  presence 
and  reign  of  Christ,  and  the  living  again  and 
reigning  with  Him  of  His  saintly  ones,  bring 
in  the  millennium,  and  constitute  its  most  dis- 
tinctive and  essential  features.  All  its  other 
blessed  characteristics  will  unfold  as  the  choice 
flower  and  fruit  of  the  dominion  of  Christ 
and  His  saints.  These  characteristics  are 
largely  set  forth  by  the  revealing  Spirit ;  and 
especially  in  the  pages  of  the  ancient 
prophets.  They  form  a  picture  of  surpassing 
grandeur  and  beauty.  Look  at  the  delinea- 
tions which  follow. 

Daniel  7:13-16. 

"  I  saw  in  the  night  visions,  and  behold  one 
like  unto  the  Son  of  Man  came  with  the  clouds 


'When  will  it  he?  71 

of  heaven,  and  came  to  the  Ancient  of  days, 
and  they  brought  Him  near  before  Him.  And 
there  was  given  Him  dominion  and  glory  and 
a  kingdom  that  all  people,  nations  and 
languages  should  serve  Him  ;  His  dominion 
is  an  everlasting  dominion  which  shall  not  pass 
away,  and  His  kingdom  that  which  shall  not 
be  destroyed." 

David,  Ps.  2  :  7-10. 

'  Yet  have  I  set  my  King  upon  my  holy  hill  of  Zion. 
I  will  declare  the  decree  ; 

The  Lord  hath  said  unto  me,  thou  art  My  son ; 
This  day  have  I  begotten  thee. 
Ask  of  Me,   and  I  shall  give  Thee  the  heathen  for  thine 

inheritance, 
And  the  uttermost  parts  of  the  earth  for  thy  possession. 
Thou  shalt  break  them  with  a  rod  of  iron. 

Thou  shalt  dash  them  in  pieces  like  a  potter's  vessel." 

Isaiah  25  :  6-9. 

"  And  in  this  mountain  shall  the  Lord  of 
Hosts  make  unto  all  people  a  feast  of  fat  things ; 
a  feast  of  wines  on  the  lees ;  of  fat  things  full 
of  marrow  ;  of  wines  on  the  lees  well  refmed. 
And  He  will  destroy  in  this  mountain  the  face 


72  The  Blessed  Hope 

of  the  covering  cast  over  all  people,  and 
the  vail  that  is  spread  over  all  nations.  He 
will  swallow  up  death  in  victory ;  and  the 
Lord  God  will  wipe  away  tears  from  all 
faces  ;  and  the  rebuke  of  His  people  shall  He 
take  away  from  off  all  the  earth  ;  for  the 
Lord  God  hath  spoken  it.  And  it  shall  be 
said  in  that  day,  Lo,  this  is  our  God  ;  we  have 
waited  for  Him  ;  we  will  be  glad  and  rejoice 
in  His  salvation." 

Isaiah  2 ;  2-6. 

"  And  it  shall  come  to  pass  in  the  last  days, 
that  the  mountain  of  the  Lord's  house  shall 
be  established  in  the  top  of  the  mountains, 
and  shall  be  exalted  above  the  hills,  and  all 
nations  shall  flow  unto  it.  And  many  people 
shall  go  and  say,  Come  ye  and  let  us  go  up  to 
the  mountain  of  the  Lord,  to  the  house  of  the 
God  of  Jacob,  and  He  will  teach  us  of  His 
ways,  and  we  will  walk  in  His  paths;  for  out 
of  Zion  shall  go  forth  the  law,  and  the  Word 
of  the  Lord  from  Jerusalem.     And   He  shall 


When  will  it  be?  73 


judge  among  the  nations,  and  shall  rebuke 
many  people ;  and  they  shall  beat  their  swords 
into  plowshares,  and  their  spears  into  pruning 
hooks ;  nation  shall  not  lift  up  sword  against 
nation,  neither  shall  they  learn  war  any  more." 

Isaiah  35  :  3-10. 

"  Strengthen  ye  the  weak  hands,  and  con- 
firm the  feeble  knees.  Say  ye  to  them  that 
are  of  a  fearful  heart — Be  strong,  fear  not» 
Behold  your  God  will  come  with  vengeance^ 
even  God  with  a  recompense.  He  will  come 
and  save  you.  Then  the  eyes  of  the  blind 
shall  be  opened,  and  the  ears  of  the  deaf  shall 
be  unstopped.  Then  shall  the  lame  man  leap 
as  an  hart,  and  the  tongue  of  the  dumb  shall 
sing  ;  for  in  the  wilderness  shall  waters  break 
out,  and  streams  in  the  desert.  And  the 
parched  ground  shall  become  a  pool,  and  the 
thirsty  land  springs  of  water ;  in  the  habita- 
tion of  dragons,  where  each  lay,  shall  be 
grass  with  reeds  and  rushes.  And  an  high- 
way shall  be  there,  and  a  way,  and  it  shall  be 


74  The  Blessed  Hope. 


called,  the  way  of  holiness :  the  unclean 
shall  not  pass  over  it;  but  it  shall  be  for  those  ; 
the  wayfaring  men,  though  fools,  shall  not 
err  therein.  No  Hon  shall  be  there,  nor  any 
ravenous  beast  shall  go  up  thereon  ;  it  shall 
not  be  found  there  ;  but  the  redeemed  shall 
walk  there,  and  the  ransomed  of  the  Lord 
shall  return  and  come  to  ZIon  with  songs  and 
everlasting  joy  upon  their  heads;  they  shall 
obtain  joy  and  gladness,  and  sorrow  and  sigh- 
ing shall  flee  away." 

Isaiah  60:   15-22. 

"  Whereas  thou  hast  been  forsaken  and 
hated,  so  that  no  man  went  through  thee, 
I  will  make  thee  an  eternal  excellency,  a  joy 
of  many  generations.  Thou  shalt  also  suck 
the  milk  of  the  Gentiles,  and  shalt  suck  the 
breast  of  kings,  and  thou  shalt  know  that  I 
the  Lord  am  thy  Saviour,  and  thy  Redeemer, 
the  mighty  one  of  Jacob.  For  brass  I  will 
bring  gold ;  and  for  iron  I  will  bring  silver ; 
and  for  wood,  brass ;  and  for  stones,  iron.     I 


'When  will  it  he?  T5 

will  also  make  thy  officers  peace,  and  thine 
exactors  righteousness.  Violence  shall  no 
more  be  heard  in  thy  land,  wasting  nor  de- 
struction within  thy  borders,  but  thou  shalt 
call  thy  walls,  salvation,  and  thy  gates, 
praise.  The  sun  shall  no  more  be  thy  light 
by  day ;  neither  for  brightness  shall  the  moon 
give  light  unto  thee ;  but  the  Lord  shall  be 
unto  thee  an  everlasting  light,  and  thy  God 
thy  glory.  Thy  sun  shall  no  more  go  down  ; 
neither  shall  thy  moon  withdraw  itself;  for 
the  Lord  shall  be  thine  everlasting  light,  and 
the  days  of  thy  mourning  shall  be  ended. 
Thy  people  also  shall  be  all  righteous  ;  they 
shall  inherit  the  land  forever,  the  branch  of 
my  planting,  the  work  of  my  hands,  that  I  may 
be  glorified.  A  little  one  shall  become  a 
thousand,  and  a  small  one  a  strong  nation. 
I  the  Lord  will  hasten  it  in  its  time." 

Isaiah  65  :   17-25. 

"  For  behold,  I   create  new  heavens,  and  a 
new    earth ;     and    the    former    shall    not   be 


76  The  Blessed  Hope. 

remembered,  nor  come  Into  mind.  But,  be 
ye  glad  and  rejoice  forever  In  that  which  I 
create  ;  for  behold  I  create  Jerusalem  a  rejoic- 
ing, and  her  people  a  joy.  And  I  will  rejoice 
in  Jerusalem  and  joy  In  my  people  ;  and  the 
voice  of  weeping  shall  be  no  more  heard  In 
her,  nor  the  voice  of  crying.  There  shall  be 
no  more  thence  an  infant  of  days,  nor  an  old 
man  that  hath  not  filled  his  days ;  for  the 
child  shall  die  an  hundred  years  old  ;  but  the 
sinner  being  an  hundred  years  old  shall  be 
accursed.  And  they  shall  build  houses  and 
Inhabit  them  ;  and  they  shall  plant  vineyards, 
and  eat  the  fruit  of  them.  They  shall  not 
build,  and  another  inhabit ;  they  shall  not 
plant  and  another  eat ;  for  as  the  days  of  a 
tree  are  the  days  of  my  people  and  mine  elect 
shall  long  enjoy  the  work  of  their  hands. 
They  shall  not  labor  in  vain,  nor  bring  forth 
for  trouble ;  for  they  are  the  seed  of  the 
blessed  of  the  Lord,  and  their  offspring  with 
them.  And  it  shall  come  to  pass,  that  before 
they  call,  I  will   answer ;  and  while    they  are 


When  will  if  hef  77 


yet  speaking  I  will  hear.     The  wolf  and  the 

lamb  shall  feed  together,  and   the   lion   shall 

eat  straw  like  the  bullock,  and  dust  shall  be 

the  serpent's  meat.     They  shall  not  hurt    nor 

destroy  in    all  my  holy  mountain,  saith   the 

Lord." 

•  Isaiah  24  :  23. 

"  Then  the  moon  shall  be  confounded,  and 
the  sun  ashamed,  when  the  Lord  of  Hosts 
shall  reign  in  Mount  Zion,  and  in  Jerusalem 
and  before  His  ancients  gloriously." 

Such  are  some  of  the  delineations  of  the 
prophets.  In  this  way  do  they  depict  that 
illustrious  period  when  there  shall  be  given 
unto  One  like  the  Son  of  Man,  dominion  and 
glory  and  a  kingdom.  The  transcendent 
vision  has  kindled  the  faith  and  hope  of  ages 
in  the  past.  It  exerts  now  a  divine  power. 
When  men  see  it  turning  from  prophecy  into 
history  they  will  see  the  millennium. 

VOICE    OF    THE    CHURCH. 

"  Know  ye  not  that  ye  are  the  temple  of 
God,"  wrote  Paul  to  the  Christians  in  Corinth, 


78  The  Blessed  Hope. 

"  and  that  the  Spirit  of  God  dwelleth  In  you  ?" 
(i  Cor.  3  :  i6).  It  Is  a  glorious  truth,  the 
Spirit  of  God  dwells  in  the  people  of  God. 
But  let  there  be  no  mistake  here.  This 
indwelling  of  the  Spirit  Is  not  for  the  purpose 
of  new  revelations  of  truth  ;  it  is  that  the 
saints  may  have  clearer  light  upon  the  truth 
already  revealed,  and  that  thus  they  may  grow 
up  into  completer  holiness.  In  proportion  as 
they  are  faithful  and  pure  they  will  have  the 
light  of  God,  and  with  joy  they  will  walk  in 
it.  In  the  matter  of  Christian  doctrine,  there- 
fore, the  general  sense  of  the  Church  ought  to 
have  a  special  value.  If  the  Church  were 
perfect,  the  creed  of  the  Church  would  be 
the  truth.  It  Is,  however,  a  modifying  and 
damaging  fact,  that  the  Church  is  not  perfect. 
Very  far  from  it.  From  the  beginning,  Satan 
has  assiduously  sown  his  tares  among  the 
good  seed  of  God,  and  with  most  sad  results. 
The  test  of  truth,  therefore.  Is  not  the  voice  of 
the  Church,  but  the  voice  of  the  Bible.  "  To 
the  law  and  the  testimony :  If  they  speak  not 


When  will  it  he  ?  79 

according  to  this  word  It  Is  because   there  is 
no  light  in  them."     (Isaiah  8  :  20). 

PRIMITIVE    VIEW. 

In  the  apostolic  and  primitive  Church,  it  is 
certain  that  for  more  than  three  centuries  the 
second  coming  of  Christ  was  expected  to  take 
place  before  the  millennium,  and  that  the  bliss 
and  glory  of  that  period  would  flow  from  His 
presence  and  reign.  Especially  was  this  so 
while  Paganism  still  held  the  seat  of  power, 
and  the  Church  was  despised  and  persecuted. 
Most  keenly  did  she  then  feel  the  sorrows  of 
widowhood  and  long  for  the  return  of  her 
absent  Lord.  That  return  would  bring  the 
day  of  her  redemption  and  joy.  When,  how- 
ever, Constantine  mounted  the  throne,  and 
the  Church  with  him,  her  spirit  and  her  faith 
changed.  Favor  with  men,  and  increasing 
flatteries,  honors,  wealth  and  power,  made  the 
world  seem  less  barren,  and  more  attractive. 
Gradually,  but  surely,  the  blessed  hope  gave 
way  to  the  power  of  present  possession  and 


80  The  Blessed  Hope. 

enjoyment;  the  once  desolate  widow  became 
elated,  proud,  and  self-sufficient :  and  she  said 
in  her  heart,  "  I  sit  as  a  queen,  and  shall  have 
no  sorrow."  For  many  generations,  it  would 
have  been  the  dread  of  the  visible  church  to 
have  the  Lord  come. 

AFTER    THE    REFORMATION. 

The  churches  of  the  Reformation  were 
brought  into  being  by  the  Spirit  through  that 
most  vital  truth — justification  by  faith.  This 
engaged  their  profoundest  thought  and 
stirred  their  deepest  feeling.  It  was,  in  their 
view,  the  very  citadel,  of  the  whole  Christian 
cause.  In  some  less  vital  things,  their 
emancipation  from  Rome  was  less  complete. 
As  to  the  second  coming  of  the  Lord,  they 
did  not  return  wholly  to  the  first  faith.  In 
here  and  there  an  instance,  this  faith  gained  a 
place  in  the  Confessions,  but  the  general  view 
referred  those  Scriptures  which  portray  the 
future  dominion  and  glory  of  the  Church  to 
the  state  beyond  the  last  judgment ;  i.  e.,  to 


When  will  it  lef  81 

the  heavenly  and  the  eternal  state.  It  inter- 
posed no  millennium  before  the  glorious  re- 
turn of  the  Saviour.  On  the  contrary,  it  held 
that  return  to  be  nigh,  even  at  the  door ; 
but  it  also  held,  that  it  would  bring  with  it 
the  end  of  all  earthly  things.  Many  indeed, 
of  the  great  theologians  of  Westminster  were 
express  millennarians ;  the  most  of  the  chief 
men  among  them.  They  looked  first  for 
Christ  to  come,  and  then  for  His  glorious 
kingdom.  But  none  in  that  notable  Assembly 
knew  anything  of  a  latter  day  of  glory  to  the 
Church  on  earth  before  the  coming  of  the 
Lord.  They  close,  therefore,  their  grand  Con- 
fession with  the  ringing  words :  "  Christ  will 
have  that  day  unknown  to  men,  that  they  may 
shake  off  all  carnal  security,  and  be  always 
watchful,  because  they  know  not  what  hour 

the   Lord  will  come;  and  may  be  ever  pre- 
pared   to     say,    Come,    Lord    Jesus,     come 

quickly.     Amen ! " 


82  The  Blessed  Hope. 


MODERN    IDEAS. 

Those  ideas  touching  the  millennium,  both 
as  to  its  character  and  time,  which  have  been 
generally  current  within  the  last  century,  seem 
to  have  originated  with  Dr.  Daniel  Whitby. 
Certainly  he  gave  them  form  and  gained  for 
them  attention.  Diligent  inquirers  have  not 
been  able  to  trace  them  to  any  previous 
source.  By  generalizing  and  spiritualizing 
means  and  processes ;  proper,  doubtless,  in 
their  due  place  and  rpeasure,  he  reached  the 
conclusion  that  Christ,  who  was  once  offered 
to  bear  the  sins  of  many,  will  not  appear  the 
second  time  without  sin  unto  salvation,  until 
after  the  millennium ;  and  that  this  most 
signal  period  in  the  history  of  the  Church 
will  be  the  natural  and  gradual  result  of  the 
intellectual  and  spiritual  agencies  now  in 
existence  and  operation.  The  Gospel, 
especially,  will  be  more  and  more  widely 
preached  among  the  nations ;  and  the  nations 
will   become   more  and  more    subject   to    its 


When  loill  it  he  f  83 

pervasive  and  elevating  Influence,  until,  like 
leaven,  Its  sacred  force  will  reach,  and  more 
or  less  mould  the  whole  mass.  This  was 
also,  and  essentially,  the  view  of  President 
Edwards,  only  he  gave  more  prominence  to 
the  work  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  His  extra- 
ordinary manifestations.  The  great  name  of 
Edwards  was,  deservedly,  a  power  at  home 
and  abroad.  Sanctioned  by  so  grand  a  soul, 
this  modern  view  has  taken  strong  hold  upon 
the  Church  of  the  present.  The  result  is, 
that  the  Bride  Is  looking  and  longing,  not 
for  the  coming  of  the  Bridegroom,  which  she 
even  denies  to  be  as  yet  possible  ;  but,  for 
the  coming  of  the  millennium  ;  a  millennium 
to  be  realized  by  means  of  her  own  doing, 
and  a  millennium  without  the  Bridegroom 
and  the  King.  At  times,  she  is  confident  that 
she  sees  the  first  rays  of  Its  glory  gilding  the 
mountain  tops. 


84  The  Blessed  Hojpe, 


THE    TRUE    WITNESSES. 

Where,  then,  Is  the  truth?  In  the  Word  of 
God ;  and,  with  regard  to  this  matter,  only- 
there.  No  mere  data  or  process  of  human 
reason  can  furnish  its  solution.  It  belongs  to 
the  domain  of  revealed  truth.  If  God  has 
made  known  the  relation  of  the  second  com- 
ing of  his  Son  to  the  latter  day  of  glory,  we 
must  find  the  knowledge,  in  the  testimony  of 
His  witnesses  in  the  Old  and  the  New  Testa- 
ments. Let  us  cite  some  of  these  witnesses. 
Let  us  reverently  consider  their  testimony. 
"  The  words  of  the  Lord  are  pure  words ;  as 
silver  tried  in  a  furnace  of  earth,  purified 
seven  times."  (Ps.  12:  6).  "Every  word  of 
God  is  pure."     (Prov.  30  :  5). 

Isaiah  25 :  6-9. 
Listen : 

"  In  this  mountain  shall  the  Lord  of  Hosts  make 
unto  all  people  a  feast  of  fat  things ;  a  feast  of  wine 
on  the  lees;  of  fat  things  full  of  marrow,  of  wines  on 
the  lees  well  refined.  And  He  will  destroy  in  this 
mountain    the  face   of   the    covering  cast    over    all 


When  will  it  lef  85 

people,  and  the  vail  that  is  spread  over  all  nations. 
He  will  swallow  up  death  in  victory ;  and  the  Lord 
God  will  wipe  away  tears  from  off  all  faces  ;  and  the 
rebuke  of  His  people  shall  He  take  away  from  off  all 
the  earth  ;  for  the  Lord  hath  spoken  it.  And  it  shall 
be  said  in  that  day:  Lo,  this  is  our  God  ;  we  have 
waited  for  Him,  and  He  will  save  us ;  this  is  the 
Lord  ;  we  have  waited  for  Him ;  we  will  be  glad  and 
rejoice  in  His  salvation  !  " 

Who  can  doubt  that  this  prophecy  relates 
to  the  times  of  the  Messiah  ?  This  mountain 
is  Mount  Zion.  The  essential  preparation  for 
this  notable  feast  was  made  by  the  Lord, 
at  His  first  coming,  in  His  life  of  perfect 
obedience,  and  by  His  death  of  atonement  on 
Calvary.  The  overspreading  vail  is  that  thick 
covering,  which,  with  reference  to  spiritual 
things,  and  by  means  of  ignorance,  error,  and 
sin,  Satan  has  thrown  over  our  race.  "  The 
God  of  this  world  hath  blinded  the  minds  of 
them  which  believe  not,  lest  the  light  of  the 
glorious  gospel  of  Christ,  who  is  the  image 
of  God,  should  shine  unto  them."  (2  Cor.  4: 
3,  4.)  While  this  vail  thus  covers  men,  there 
can  be  no  millennium.  The  Lord  God, 
therefore,  will  destroy  it ;  and  in    connection 


86  The  Blessed  Hope. 

with  this,  or  in  doing  it,  He  will  swallow  up 
death  in  victory. 

When  will  the  Lord  God  do  these  great 
things?  Let  His  own  most  Holy  Spirit 
answer,  through  the  blessed  Paul. 

"  Behold,  I  shew  you  a  mystery.  We  shall  not  all 
sleep,  but  we  shall  all  be  changed,  in  a  moment,  in 
the  twinkling  of  an  eye,  at  the  last  trump  ;  for  the 
trumpet  shall  sound,  and  the  dead  shall  be  raised  in- 
corruptible, and  we  shall  be  changed.  For  this  cor- 
ruptible must  put  on  incorruption,  and  this  mortal 
must  put  on  immortality.  So,  when  this  corruptible 
shall  have  put  on  incorruption,  and  this  mortal  shall 
have  put  on  immortality,  then  shall  be  brought  to  pass 
the  saying,  that  is  written.  Death  is  swallowed  up  in 
victory."     (i  Cor.  15  :  51-55). 

What  could  be  plainer  7  The  Lord  God 
will  swallow  up  death  in  victory,  when  "the 
trumpet  shall  sound  and  the  dead  shall  be 
raised  incorruptible."  What  dead }  The 
apostle  leaves  no  room  for  doubt.  His 
magnificent  discourse  relates  especially  to  the 

i 

resurrection  of  the  dead  in  Christ ;  to  those 
who,  in  their  own  order,  live  again  at  His 
coming.      It  is  then,  therefore,  that   He  will 


When  will  it  lef  87 


destroy  the  vail  cast  over  the  nations,  and 
pour  all  abroad  the  light  and  glory  of  the 
millennium. 

Daniel  2  :  31-45. 
Again,  listen  : 

"  Thou,  O  King,  sawest,  and  behold  a  great  image. 
This  great  image,  whose  brightness  was  excellent, 
stood  before  thee  ;  and  the  form  thereof  was  terrible. 
This  image's  head  was  of  fine  gold ;  his  breast  and 
his  arms  of  silver ;  his  belly  and  thighs  of  brass  ;  his 
legs  of  iron  ;  his  feet  part  of  iron  and  part  of  clay. 
Thou  sawest  till  that  a  stone  was  cut  o\it  without 
hands,  which  smote  the  image  upon  his  feet,  that  were 
of  iron  and  clay,  and  brake  them  to  pieces.  Then  was 
the  iron,  the  clay,  the  brass,  the  silver  and  the  gold, 
broken  to  pieces  together,  and  became  like  the  chaff 
of  the  summer  threshing  floors,  and  the  wind  carried 
them  away,  that  no  place  was  found  for  them  ;  and 
the  stone  that  smote  the  image  became  a  great  moun- 
tain, and  filled  the  whole  earth." 

INTERPRETATION. 

The  prophet  now  interprets.  In  this  vision 
God  has  made  known  what  shall  come  to  pass 
hereafter.  The  great  image  is  a  symbol.  In 
its  form  and  materials  it  represents  four 
mighty  kingdoms  of  this  world.     They  are  to 


88  TJie  Blessed  Hope. 

arise,  each  after  the  other,  and  gain  wide 
dominion.  The  first  Is  the  Babylonian,  then 
existing.  This  statement  by  the  prophet 
renders  It  certain  that  the  other  three  king- 
doms are  the  Medo-Persian,  the  Macedonian 
and  the  Roman.  When  the  fourth  kingdom,. 
"  strong  as  iron,"  shall  reach  a  specified  stage 
in  its  history,  the  stone  cut  out  without 
hands  shall  smite  the  image  and  destroy  it ; 
and  Itself  will  become  the  world-filling  and 
world-ruling  power;  or,  "the  God  of  heaven 
will  then  set  up  a  kingdom  which  shall  never 
be  destroyed ;  and  the  kingdom  shall  not  be 
left  to  other  people,  but  it  shall  break  In 
pieces  and  consume  all  these  kingdoms,  and  it 
shall  stand  forever." 

The  prophet  does  not  explain  the  import  of 
the  stone.  It  was  not  necessary.  It  denotes 
either  "  the  stone  of  Israel,"  rejected  by  men 
but  "chosen  of  God  and  precious,"  or.  His 
Messianic  kingdom.  Nor  does  the  prophet 
determine  here  the  exact  time  of  this  king- 
dom.    In  the  vision  itself,  however,  there  are 


When  will  it  he?  89 

some  interesting  and  conclusive  data.  The 
stone  is  not  to  smite  and  destroy  the  image, 
while  the  fourth  kingdom  exists  in  its  unity, 
as  it  did  at  the  first  coming  of  Christ ;  nor 
yet  while  it  exists  in  its  twofold  division,  as  it 
did  in  the  Eastern  and  Western  empires,  re- 
presented  by  the  legs  of  iron  ;  but,  while  it 
shall  be  existing  in  its  tenfold  division,  as  re- 
presented by  the  feet  and  toes  of  iron  and 
clay.  The  stone  will  smite  upon  these,  and, 
destroying  the  kingdoms  which  they  repre- 
sent, will  bring  in  their  place  that  kingdom 
which  cannot  be  destroyed.  Demonstrably, 
therefore,  this  smiting  and  this  kingdom  are 
yet  in  the  future.  At  what  point  in  the 
future  1  Let  the  man  greatly  beloved  answer, 
in  another  vision,  which  he  himself  saw. 

"  I  saw  in  the  night  visions,  and  behold,  One  like 
the  Son  of  Man  came  with  the  clouds  of  heaven  ;  and 
came  to  the  Ancient  of  days  ;  and  they  brought  Him 
near  before  Him.  And  there  was  given  Him 
dominion  and  glory,  and  a  kingdom,  that  all  people, 
nations  and  languages  should  serve  Him ;  His 
dominion  is  an  everlasting  dominion,  which  shall  not 
pass  away,  and  His  kingdom  that  which  shall  not  be 
destroyed."     (Dan.  7  :  12-14). 


90  Tlie  Blessed  Hope. 

How  impressive  is  this  divine  view.  How 
clear  the  conclusion  which  it  compels.  The 
smiting  of  the  terrible  image  upon  its  feet 
and  toes,  by  the  stone  ;  the  destruction  of  the 
kingdoms  of  this  world,  which  these  feet  and 
toes  symbolize,  by  this  smiting ;  and  the  set- 
ting up  in  their  place  of  that  kingdom  which 
shall  be  everlasting,  are  plainly  contempora- 
neous events.  But  this  kingdom  will  be  set 
up,  or  given  to  One  like  the  Son  of  Man,  not 
until  He  comes  with  the  clouds  of  heaven  ; 
i.  e.,  at  the  second  coming  of  Christ.  Before 
that  epoch,  therefore,  there  can  be  no  millen- 
nium. 

Daniel  7  :  2-2  7. 

Hear  again  the  heavenly  witness.  In  this 
Scripture,  we  have  another  prophetic  vision. 
Widely  different  in  form  from  that  of  the 
huge  image,  it  has  essentially  the  same  im- 
port, only  that,  in  connection  with  the  latter 
days  of  the  fourth  kingdom,  it  adds  some 
particulars  of  deep  moment.  The  prophet 
beholds,  coming  up  from  the  great  sea,  four 


When  will  it  lef  91 

great  beasts.  The  first  of  these  beasts  is 
like  a  lion,  the  second  like  a  bear,  the  third 
like  a  leopard,  and  the  fourth — not  compared 
with  any  other — is  exceedingly  strong  and 
terrible,  and  exercises  immense  powers  of 
destruction.  The  four  great  kingdoms  set  forth 
in  the  vision  of  the  image  are  symbolized 
here  by  these  four  beasts.  The  extraordinary 
fourth  beast  has  ten  horns.  These  horns 
symbolize  a  tenfold  division  of  the  fourth 
kingdom,  just  as  was  done  by  the  ten  toes  of 
the  image.  Among  these  horns  springs  up 
another,  a  little  horn,  of  a  remarkable  char- 
acter. It  has  eyes,  like  the  eyes  of  a  man  ;  a 
mouth  speaking  great  things  ;  and  it  plucks 
up  three  of  the  first  horns  by  the  roots. 

The  vision  continues  "  until  the  thrones 
were  placed,  and  the  Ancient  of  days  did  sit, 
whose  garment  was  white  as  snow,  and  the 
hair  of  His  head  like  the  pure  wool.  His 
throne  was  like  the  fiery  flame,  and  His 
wheels  as  burning  fire.  A  fiery  stream  issued 
and  came  forth  from  before    Him  ;  thousand 


92  The  Blessed  Hope. 

thousands  ministered  unto  Him,  and  ten 
thousand  times  ten  thousand  stood  before 
Him.  The  judgment  was  set,  and  the  books 
were  opened."  Up  to  the  very  moment  of 
this  overwhelming  scene  is  heard  "  the  voice 
of  the  great  words  which  the  horn  spake." 
But,  the  judgment  proceeds;  the  beast  is  slain 
and  his  body  given  to  the  burning  flame ;  the 
Son  of  Man  comes  with  the  clouds  of  heaven, 
and  Is  Invested  by  the  Ancient  of  days  with 

the  promised  and  glorious  kingdom. 

• 

INTERPRETATION. 

Divine  manifestations  awe  men.  The 
prophet  was  deeply  impressed.  His  spirit 
was .  troubled  within  Him.  What  can  this 
transcendent  vision  mean  ?  Especially  did 
he  desire  to  "  know  the  truth  of  the  fourth 
beast,  so  diverse  from  all  the  others,  and 
exceedingly  dreadful  ;  and  of  the  ten  horns 
that  were  In  his  head  ;  and  of  the  other  which 
came  up,  and  before  which  three  fell  ;  even  of 
that  horn  that  had    eyes,  and  a   mouth   that 


When  will  it  he?  93 

spake  very  great  things  ;  whose  look  was 
more  stout  than  his  fellows;  and  the  same 
horn  that  made  war  with  the  saints,  and  pre- 
vailed against  them."  This  strong  desire 
of  the  prophet  was  answered.  "  The  fourth 
beast,"  said  the  interpreter,  "shall  be  the 
fourth  kingdom  upon  earth,  which  shall  be 
diverse  from  all  kingdoms,  and  shall  de- 
vour the  whole  earth,  and  tread  it  down  and 
break  it  in  pieces.  And  the  ten  horns  out 
of  this  kingdom  are  ten  kings  that  shall  arise ; 
and  another  shall  rise  after  them,  and  he 
shall  be  diverse  from  the  first,  and  he  shall 
subdue  three  kings.  And  he  shall  speak 
great  words  against  the  Most  High,  and  think 
to  change  times  and  laws.  And  they,"  i.e., 
the  saints,  "  shall  be  given  into  his  hand,  until 
a  time  and  times  and  the  dividing  of  time." 

CONCLUSION. 

We  have  thus  the  elements  of  a  true  and 
great  conclusion.  The  fourth  beast  symbolizes 
the  fourth  kingdom,  i.e.,  the  Roman.     Its  ten 


94  The  Blessed  Hope. 

horns  symbolize  the  fourth  kingdom  in  its 
state  of  tenfold  division,  which  has  existed 
now  for  centuries.  The  little  horn,  which 
comes  up  among  the  ten,  and  displaces  three 
of  them,  symbolizes  another  kingdom,  of  a 
character  without  its  parallel  for  malignity 
and  impiety.  In  the  light  of  the  past  and  the 
present,  how  can  it  be  doubted  that  this  horn 
points  to  the  apostate  Church — so  ambitious 
of  secular  as  well  as  ecclesiastical  power,  and 
exercising  its  power  all  along  its  course  in 
bitter  opposition  to  the  truth  and  the  cause  of 
Christ  }  Where  else,  since  Constantine  does 
there  exist  such  a  record  of  iniquities  and 
atrocities — for  the  repression  and  extirpation, 
not  of  evil,  but  of  good ;  or  such  an  arroga- 
tion,  by  miserable  men,  of  the  honors  and 
powers  which  belong  only  to  God.  Beyond 
any  question,  this  horn  designates  some  for- 
midable and  relentless  enemy  of  the  saints  of 
the  Most  High.  And  now,  mark;  it  makes 
war  with  the  saints,  and  prevails  against  them, 
and  wears  them  out  —  how  long?     Until  the 


When  will  it  he?  95 

millennium  ?  The  inspired  answer  is  :  until 
the  Ancient  of  days  shall  come  ;  until  judg- 
ment is  given  to  the  saints  of  the  Most  High  ; 
until  the  time  is  come  that  the  saints  possess 
the  kingdom  ;  all  which  events  are  here  in- 
separably connected  with  the  coming  of  the 
Son  of  Man  with  the  clouds  of  heaven  ;  or, 
what  is  the  same  thing,  His  coming  in  the 
glory  of  His  Father,  with  all  the  holy  angels. 
There  can  be  no  millennium,  therefore,  before 
Christ's  second  coming. 

"  Far  down  the  ages  now, 

Her  journey  well-nigh  past ; 
The  pilgrim  Church  fares  on,  in  hope 
To  reach  the  crown  at  last. 

No  wider  is  the  gate, 

No  broader  is  the  way. 
No  smoother  is  the  ancient  path 

That  leads  to  light  and  day, 

No  slacker  grows  the  fight, 

No  feebler  is  the  foe, 
No  less  the  need  of  armor  tried. 

Of  shield  and  spear  and  bow. 

Nor  less  we  feel  the  blank 

Of  earth's  still  absent  King, 
Whose  presence  is  of  all  our  bliss 

The  everlasting  spring." 


QUESTION  OF  TIME. 

{CONTINUED.) 


(QUESTION    OF   TIME. 

(  continued:) 


"  Jesus  saith  unto  hzm,  '  Thou  hast  said ;  nevertheless,  I 
say  unto  you,  hereafter  shall  ye  see  the  Son  of  Man  sitting 
on  the  right  hand  of  poiver,  and  coming  i7i  the  clouds  of 
heaven'  " — Matt.  26  :  64. 


"  How  long,  O  !  Lord  our  Saviour, 

Wilt  Thou  remain  away.'' 
Our  hearts  are  growing  weary 

Of  thy  so  long  delay ; 
O  !  when  shall  come  the  moment, 

When  brighter  far  than  morn 
The  sunshine  of  Thy  glory 

Thy  people  shall  adorn. 

How  long,  O  !  Heavenly  Bridegroom, 

How  long  wilt  Thou  delay? 
And  yet  how  few  are  grieving 

That  Thou  dost  absent  stay. 
The  very  Bride  her  portion 

And  calling  hath  forgot, 
And  seeks  for  ease  and  glory 

Where  Thou,  O  !  Lord,  art  not. 


100  The  Blessed  Hope. 


O  !  Wake  thy  slumbering  virgins, 

Send  forth  the  solemn  cry, 
Let  all  thy  saints  repeat  it. 

The  Bridegroom  draweth  nigh. 
May  all  our  lamps  be  burning, 

Our  loins  well  girded  be. 
Each  longing  heart  preparing 

With  joy  Thy  face  to  see." 


AS  the  witness  of  the  New  Testament 
to  the  second  coming  of  Christ  is 
more  full  and  definite  than  that  of  the  Old 
Testament  with  reference  to  the  great  event 
itself  and  its  accessories,  so  also  it  is  as  to 
its  time.  It  does  not,  indeed,  lift  the  vail 
from  "that  day  and  hour"  when  the  Lord 
will  come,  but  it  pours  a  clear  light  on  the 
divine  order.  In  harmony  with  the  witness  of 
the  Old  Testament,  it  shows  that  the  great 
day  of  the  Lord,  when  He  will  come  in  the 
glory  of  His  Father,  and  with  the  holy 
angels,  will  precede  and  usher  in  the  millen- 
nium. Glance  at  some  of  its  testimonies. 
Taken  singly,  they  may  appear  more  or  less 


Question  of  Time — Continued.  101 

decisive.     Taken    together,  they  lay  a   soHd 
foundation  for  Christian  faith. 

ABSENCE    OF    THE    BRIDEGROOM.  , 

(Matt.  9:  15.) 

John  the  Baptist  was  an  ascetic.  He  came 
neither  eating  bread  nor  drinking  wine.  He 
was  also  a  preacher  of  repentance,  and  en- 
joined fasting  as  a  religious  duty.  Like  the 
Pharisees,  therefore,  his  disciples  were  wont  to 
fast.  It  was  meant  to  be  an  expressive,  out- 
ward sign  of  strong,  inward  feeling;  a  sym- 
bolical confession  of  sin  and  sorrow ;  of  deep 
affliction  of  the  soul.  The  disciples  of  Jesus 
did  not  fast.  The  fact  was  observed,  and 
prompted  the  inquiry,  "  Why  do  we  and  the 
Pharisees  fast  oft,  but  thy  disciples  fast  not.^" 
How  instructive  and  beautiful  is  the  reply  : 
"  Jesus  said  unto  them.  Can  the  children  of 
the  bride-chamber  mourn  as  long  as  the  Bride- 
groom is  with  them  ?  "  Certainly  not.  Well, 
I  am  the  Bridegroom  of  the  Church.  And 
thus,  as  Alford    points  out.  He  "  announces 


102  The  Blessed  Ilojpe. 

the  fulfilment  in  Him  of  a  whole  cycle  of 
Old  Testament  prophecies  and  figures."  And 
this  being  so,  how  could  his  disciples  fast  ? 
His  personal  presence  with  them  precluded 
sorrow.  It  did  so,  even  when  they  saw  Him 
in  the  form  of  a  servant,  and  their  knowledge 
of  Him  and  His  sublime  purposes  was  most 
imperfect.  Much  more  will  it  do  this  when 
He  shall  be  present  with  them  in  His  full 
array  of  divine  beauty  and  power.  "  But," 
He  added,  "  the  days  will  come  when  the 
Bridegroom  shall  be  taken  from  them,  and 
then  shall  they  fast."  The  evangelist  Luke 
has  it,  "  and  then  shall  they  fast,  in  those 
days,"  i.  e.,  when  and  while  the  Bridegroom  is 
gone.  The  going  away  of  the  Bridegroom 
was,  indeed,  expedient  ;  but  how  the  very 
thought  of  it  depressed  those  first  disciples. 
It  would  itself  be  a  great  sorrow.  It  would 
also  bring  the  season  .and  the  occasions  for 
other  sorrows.  Then  the  world  would  renew 
its  temptations  ;  then  the  flesh  would  stand 
disclosed    in    all    its  weakness ;    then    Satan 


Question  of  Time  —  Continued.  103 

would  redouble  his  infernal  craft  and  power; 
then  too,  if  ever,  they  would  know  by  experi- 
ence of  the  great  tribulation  out  of  which  all 
will  come  who  shall  stand  before  the  throne 
of  God  and  of  the  Lamb  in  the  glory  of  con- 
querors. And  how  could  they  suppose  the 
effect  would  be  less  permanent  than  its  cause  ? 
Or,  how  can  we  suppose  this  ?  The  fasting- 
time  of  the  Bride  is  plainly  commensurate 
with  the  absence  of  the  Bridegroom ;  unlessi 
indeed,  meanwhile,  her  love  shall  grow  cold, 
and  the  Bride  become  an  harlot.  But  this 
would  call  for  still  deeper  sorrow.  It  would 
indicate  anything  else  than  the  presence  and 
glories  of  the  millennium.  Those  days,  there- 
fore, when  the  Bride  shall  fast  because  the 
Bridegroom  is  taken  away,  will  continue  until 
the  Bridegroom  returns. 

THE    DECAY    OF    FAITH. 
(Luke  i8:  i-8). 

Add  to  this  thought  that  touching  question . 
of  the  Lord  in  the  parable  of  the  unjust  judge. 


104  The  Blessed  Hbjpe. 

He  would  impress  It  upon  men  that  they 
should  always  pray  and  not  faint.  He  does 
this  by  showing  us  a  widow  bringing  her  suit 
before  an  earthly  tribunal.  The  judge  is  one 
who  does  not  care  for  either  man  or  God. 
His  office  is  his  instrument  of  power  and 
plunder.  Time  and  again,  therefore,  he  sends 
her  from  his  presence  without  redress.  She, 
however,  will  not  be  denied.  She  persists  in 
urging  and  re-urging  her  case,  until  the  wretch 
is  compelled,  by  regard  to  his  own  ease,  to 
vindicate  her.  Now,  will  not  God,  the  infin- 
itely righteous  Judge,  and  who  also  loves  His 
people  with  an  immeasurable  love,  hear  and 
answer  those  who  cry  day  and  night  unto 
Him }  Most  assuredly  He  will,  and  that 
speedily.  It  may,  indeed,  sometimes  seem 
to  them  long  that  He  waits,  but  their  trials 
and  griefs  shall  be  over  and  gone  the  first 
moment  their  own  highest  good  will  permit. 
This  the  Scriptures  certify,  and  this  the  ages 
have  seen.  If  often  the  furnace  has  been  ex- 
ceeding   hot,   the    result    in    spiritual    wealth 


Question  of  Time — Continued.  105 

and  beauty  has  been  correspondingly  eminent 
"  Nevertheless,"  the  Saviour  proceeds  to  ask, 
"  when  the  Son  of  Man  cometh,  shall  he  find 
faith  on  the  earth  ?  "  What  a  startling  inquiry  ! 
He  will  come  again,  but  when  He  comes,  what 
a  spiritual  condition  of  men !  It  almost  over- 
whelms one  to  think  of  it;  but  the  import  of 
the  question  is  plain.  Faith  will  have  almost 
failed  when  the  Son  of  Man  shall  come.  And 
yet,  the  ideas  now  so  current  in  the  Church 
make  this  astounding  and  world-wide  decay 
of  faith  follow  at  once  upon  the  millennium ; 
t.  e.,  upon  the  world-wide  prevalence  of  truth, 
righteousness,  peace,  and  all  the  extraordinary 
blessings  and  glories  of  the  long-promised 
thousand  years !  Is  it  conceivable }  Is  it 
possible  .f*  We  can,  indeed,  see  how  faith  in 
revealed  truth  may  now  fall.  In  fact,  we  see 
that  it  often  does  fail.  In  the  visible  Church 
itself  there  seems  to  be  already  more  of  un- 
belief than  of  faith.  Large  numbers  of  pro- 
fessedly Christian  teachers  find  the  ultimate 
authority  in  their  own   reason.      Still    larger 


106  The  Blessed  Hope. 

numbers  of  professedly  Christian  people  de- 
light more  in  human  folly  than  in  the  divine 
wisdom.  It  is  not  difficult  to  believe  that  In 
the  last  days  perilous  times  will  come  by 
means  of  false  philosophy,  false  science,  false 
religion,  and  of  the  worldly  spirit  and  unholy 
lives  of  those  who  ought  to  be  the  wit- 
nesses of  God ;  and  that  at  the  end  of  this  dis- 
pensation it  may  be  just  as  It  was  In  the  days 
before  the  flood.  But,  that  the  millennium 
should  come  and  go  and  leave  no  trace 
behind ;  that  a  period  which  the  Scriptures 
clothe  with  more  than  the  beauty  and  bright- 
ness of  the  sun ;  whose  demonstrations  of 
truth  will  be  overwhelming  as  they  will  be 
grand  and  glorious  ;  whose  fruits  of  righteous- 
ness, peace,  purity  and  abounding  joy  will 
make  the  earth  again  like  heaven  ;  and  during 
which  "  all  men  shall  be  blessed  in  Christ  and 
all  nations  shall  call  Him  blessed;"  that  such 
a  period  should  end  in  one  of  almost  utter 
darkness  is  incredible.  For  a  little  season.  It 
is  true,  Satan  will  be  loosed   from  his  prison. 


Question  of  Thne  —  Continued.  107 

He  will  then  make  another  and  most  des- 
perate attempt  against  the  saints  and  their 
mighty  King.  But  with  what  result?  Ap- 
parently with  no  result,  except  to  deceive  some 
of  the  then  unconverted  in  the  four  quarters 
of  the  earth.  Most  assuredly  there  will  be  no 
want  of  faith  then  In  the  camp  of  the  saints 
or  In  the  beloved  city.  And  when  at  length 
the  great  adversary  and  His  embattled  host 
are  all  ready  for  the  onset,  but  before  they 
seem  to  have  struck  a  blow — fire  comes  down 
from  God  out  of  heaven  and  devours  them. 
In  the  Bible  view  of  the  future  there  Is  no 
place  after  the  millennium  for  so  stupendous  a 
descent,  as  the  current  Ideas  Imply  from  uni- 
versal faith  and  holiness,  to  universal  unbelief 
and  Impiety.  If,  when  the  Son  of  Man 
cometh.  He  shall  not  find  faith  on  the  earth, 
His  coming  must  be  before  the  millennium. 

THE    WHEAT    AND    THE    TARES. 
(Matt.  13:  24-30). 

Glance  also  at  the  parable  of  the  wheat  and 
the  tares.     Clear  and  impressive  by  itself,  it 


108  The  Blessed  Hope. 

is  made  specially  so  by  a  full  interpretation 
from  the  Lord.  The  Son  of  Man  sows  His 
good  seed  in  the  visible  Church,  though,  indeed, 
not  exclusively  there ;  He  sows  them,  more  or 
less,  through  the  whole  world.  He  began  this 
divine  sowing  in  Eden.  He  has  continued 
His  gracious  work  from  that  day  until  now, 
and  He  will  continue  it  until  the  probation  of 
men  is  over.  His  great  enemy,  the  devil,  is 
determined  to  counteract  His  efforts,  and 
frustrate,  so  far  as  possible,  their  beneficent 
results.  Broadcast,  but  by  stealth,  he  sows 
tares  all  over  the  same  field.  Presently,  there- 
fore, appear,  thoroughly  intermingled,  the 
genuine  wheat  and  the  noxious  weeds — the 
children  of  the  kingdom,  and  the  children  of 
the  evil  one.  What  now  shall  be  done.^^ 
Pluck  up  and  cast  away  the  tares  }  No,  says 
the  Master,  "  lest  ye  root  up  also 'the  wheat 
with  them.  Let  both  orrow  tog^ether  until  the 
harvest,  and  in  the  time  of  the  harvest  I  will 
say  to  My  reapers,  gather  ye  together  first  the 
tares,  and  bind  them  in  bundles  to  burn  them, 


Question  of  Time — Continued.  109 

but  gather  the  wheat  Into  My  barn."  Verily 
His  thoughts  are  not  as  our  thoughts.  But, 
Lord,  who  are  the  reapers  ?  My  holy  angels 
who  will  attend  Me  when  the  harvest  of  the 
earth  Is  ripe,  and  I  come  In  My  glory  to  reap 
it.  (Rev.  14:  14;  Matt.  25  :  31).  And  when. 
Lord,  when  shall  the  harvest  be  }  The  har- 
vest Is  the  end  of  the  world.  The  end  of  the 
world !  But,  most  gracious  Master,  can  this 
be  so  }  Are  these  pernicious  tares — is  all  this 
tangled  mass  of  confusion  and  evil  which  they 
represent  to  continue  until  then.?  Must  not 
the  latter  day  of  glory  shine  upon  this  now 
wretched  earth  before  Thy  second  coming — 
that  day  when  all  things  that  offend  shall  be 
cast  out  of  Thy  kingdom,  and  Thy  people 
shall  be  all  righteous,  and  the  righteous  shall 
shine  forth  as  the  sun }  No ;  replies  the 
Master,  let  both  grow  together ;  the  wicked 
with  the  godly ;  shameless  hypocrites  with 
true  saints ;  those  who  do  iniquity  with  those 
who  follow  the  Lamb,  until  the  harvest ;  until 
the  end  of  the  world ;  until  the   Son  of  Man 


110  The  Blessed  Hope. 

shall  come  with  the  clouds  of  heaven  for  judg- 
ment. *•  Pregnant  words,"  as  Trench  well  says» 
"which  tell  us  that  evil  is  not,  as  so  many 
dream,  gradually  to  wane  and  disappear  before 
the  good,  and  the  world  to  find  itself  in  the 
Church  ;  but,  each  to  unfold  itself  more  fully 
out  of  its  own  root,  after  its  own  kind,  till,  at 
last  they  stand  face  to  face,  each  in  its  highest 
manifestation  in  the  persons  of  Christ  and 
Anti-Christ ;  on  the  one  hand,  an  incarnate 
God  ;  or  the  other,  the  man  in  whom  the  ful- 
ness of  all  Satanic  power  will  dwell  bodily. 
Both  are  to  grow  until  the  harvest;  till  they 
are  ripe,  one  for  destruction,  and  the  other  for 
full  salvation." 

THE    NOBLEMAN    AND    HIS    KINGDOM. 
(Lul^  19  :  11-27.) 

In  full  harmony  with  this  Is  that  parable  of 
a  certain  nobleman  who  went  into  a  far 
country  to  receive  for  Himself  a  kingdom  and 
to  return.  The  Lord  spoke  it  apparently 
when  in  the  house   of  Zaccheus.     It  was  on 


Question  of  Time  —  Continued.^  Ill 

the  week  before  His  death.  As  on  His 
journey,  He  drew  nigh  to  Jerusalem,  some  of 
those  who  were  with  Him,  thought  the  king- 
dom of  God  would  immediately  appear.  Who 
could  tell  but  when  He  reached  the  royal  city, 
He  would  proclaim  Himself  the  Messiah,  the 
mighty  King?  It  was  a  grave  error.  Unless 
dissipated  it  would  work  evil.  Many  most 
essential  and  wonderful  things  must  take  place 
before  His  coronation  day.  In  this  parable, 
therefore,  He  shadowed  forth  the  real  truth. 
By  the  nobleman,  He  means  Himself  By 
the  going  into  a  far  country  to  receive  a  king- 
dom. He  means  His  own  going  up  to  the 
throne  of  the  Father,  who  has  promised  Him 
the  kingdom,  and  in  due  time  will  invest  Him 
with  it.  By  the  conduct  of  His  servants  and 
His  citizens.  He  means  to  set  forth  what  men 
in  this  world  will  be  and  do  during:  His 
absence.  By  the  return,  He  means  His  own 
second  coming. 

Our  Lord,  then,  has  gone  away  to  receive 
for  Himself  a  kingdom.     Centuries  have  since 


Uiri7BRSIT7l 


112  The  Blessed  Hope, 

passed,  and  He  is  still  absent.  The  implica- 
tion is  that  He  has  not  yet  received  that  for 
which  He  went ;  i.  e.,  that  special  kingdom, 
which  the  parable  contemplates,  for,  upon  re- 
ceiving it,  He  was  to  return.  And  this  implica- 
tion is  made  sure  by  the  clear  foreshowing  of 
the  prophet.  (Dan.  7  :  13,  14).  It  is  true, 
indeed,  that  the  divine  Son  received  this  king- 
dom by  promise,  in  the  eternal  covenant.  It 
is  also  true  that  He  made  perfect  His  inde- 
feasible right  to  it,  when,  having  become  incar- 
nate, He  offered  Himself  without  spot  unto 
God  on  Calvary.  But  it  is  equally  plain  that 
His  formal  and  visible  investiture  with  it  is 
still  in  the  future.  The  Messianic  kingdom — 
that  special  dominion,  which,  as  the  God-Man 
Redeemer  He  will  exercise  upon  His  own 
throne,  in  distinction  from  that  which  He  now 
exercises  upon  His  Fathers  throne,  is  to  be 
given  to  Him  by  the  Ancient  of  days,  when  He 
shall  come  with  the  clouds  of  heaven.  This 
kingdom  is  an  everlasting  one ;  and  under  it,  all 
people,  nations  and  languages  shall  serve  Him. 


Question  of  Time — Continued.  113 

Besides  which,  observe  this  further  truth  set 
forth  in  the  parable.  The  return  of  the  Lord, 
having  received  the  kingdom,  is  His  second 
coming.  His  absence,  therefore,  is  to  extend 
from  His  ascension  to  heaven  from  the  Mount 
of  OHves  in  the  sight  of  wondering  witnesses, 
to  His  descent  from  heaven,  with  the  voice  of 
the  archangel,  and  with  the  trumpet  of  God. 
Now,  what  will  be  the  spiritual  aspects  of  the 
intervening  period?  Christ  himself  has  told 
us  in  the  parable.  He  bade  His  servants, 
^'  Occupy  till  I  come  ! "  These  servants  repre- 
sent the  visible  Church.  Some  of  them  are 
faithful  and  will  receive  their  reward.  Others 
of  them  prove  unfaithful.  They  betray  their 
holy  trust,  and  seek  to  vindicate  themselves 
by  impeaching  the  Master.  How  the  facts,  so 
far,  correspond  with  the  prediction.  But,  He 
also  has  His  citizens.  These  represent  the 
world  outside  of  the  Church.  The  parable 
shows  them  in  positive  rebellion.  They  hate 
Him.  They  send  a  message  after  Him.  They 
cry  out,  we  will  not  have  this  man  to  reign 

9 


114:  The  Blessed  Ilope. 

over  us.  Could  there  be  a  truer  representa- 
tion of  the  feelings  and  course  of  the  mass  of 
men  towards  their  absent,  but  rightful  Lord 
and  King?  It  has  been  so  along  the  past, 
since  He  went  away.  It  is  so  now,  among  the 
most  civilized,  as  well  as  among  the  most  bar- 
barous. What  throngs  of  unfaithful  servants 
in  the  Church  !  What  bitter  and  pronounced 
opposition  to  Christ  through  the  nations! 
The  world  over,  individual  sentiment,  social 
customs,  public  laws,  the  dominant  spirit  and 
action  of  the  race  cry  out  aloud,  "  We  will  not 
have  this  man  to  reign  over  us!"  According 
to  the  parable,  this  state  of  things  will  last 
until  the  Lord  shall  come  and  take  account  of 
His  servants  and  His  citizens.  Until  then, 
therefore,  there  can  be  no  millennium. 

PROPHECY    OF    THE    LORD. 
(Matt.  24:  I- 51}. 

Having  spoken  this  parable,  the  Lord  went 
before,  ascending  up  to  Jerusalem.  It  was  on 
Friday,  apparently,  that  He  reached  Bethany, 


Question  of  Time  —  Continued.  115 

the  home  of  Martha  and  Mary  and  Lazarus. 
The  morrow  would  be  the  first  day  of  the 
great  week — week  filled  with  events  of  infinite 
interest.  Two  days  before  the  passover,  the 
Saviour  took  His  departure  from  the  temple 
and  the  city,  saying,  "  Behold,  your  house  is 
left  unto  you  desolate.  For  I  say  unto  you, 
ye  shall  not  see  me  henceforth  till  ye  shall  say 
Blessed  is  He  that  cometh  in  the  name  of  the 
Lord."  Crossing  then  the  Cedron  and  going 
up  the  Mount  of  Olives,  He  sat  there  gazing, 
in  sadness,  on  the  scenes  He  had  just  left. 
Eager  for  fuller  knowledge  of  those  amazing 
events  which  He  so  often  had  intimated  would 
come,  His  disciples  gather  around  Him  and 
ask,  "  When  shall  these  things  be  ?  And  what 
shall  be  the  sign  of  Thy  coming,  and  of  the 
end  of  the  world  T'  The  time  and  the  cir- 
cumstances rendered  the  inquiry  a  most  fitting 
one,  and  its  answer  a  necessity,  not  only  for 
their  fuller  knowledge,  but  also  for  their  sup- 
port in  the  dread  experience  they  were  so 
soon  to  have  as  His  disciples.     He.  therefore 


116  The  Blessed  Ho;pe, 

opened  His  mouth  and  uttered  that  memora- 
ble discourse,  which  may  well  be  called  the 
great  prophecy  of  the  Lord  himself  concern- 
ing the  last  days,  and  concerning  His  own 
coming  again  in  glory.  Some  of  its  details 
may  perplex  us.  In  a  portion  of  it,  too,  there 
is,  doubtless,  a  parallel  between  events  con- 
nected with  the  destruction  of  the  Jewish 
economy,  and  events  which  will  be  connected 
with  the  closing  up  of  the  present  dispensa- 
tion. But  its  outline  and  its  essential  mean- 
ing are  clear  as  the  sun.  It  reaches  from  the 
time  then  present,  to  the  day  of  the  coming  of 
the  Son  of  Man  in  the  clouds  of  heaven  with 
power  and  great  glory.  Look  at  it,  then,  and 
point  out  where,  by  any  possibility  it  implies 
the  millennium  before  that  day.  Look  at  it 
and  point  out  where  it  does  not  utterly  ex- 
clude the  millennium  before  that  day.  It  tells 
of  wars  and  rumors  of  wars ;  of  nations  and 
kingdoms  in  turmoil  and  deadly  conflict  ;  of 
famines,  and  pestilences  and  earthquakes.  It 
tells   of    affliction    and    persecution      in    the 


Question  of  Time — Continued.  117 

Church  ;  of  false  brethren,  of  false  prophets, 
and  false  Chrlsts  having  great  power  ;  and  of 
the  large  decay  of  love,  because  of  abound- 
ing Iniquity.  It  tells  of  the  times  of  the  Gen- 
tiles, during  the  whole  remaining  course  of 
which  Jerusalem  shall  be  trodden  down,  as  we 
see  at  this  day.  It  tells  of  the  preaching  of 
the  Gospel  of  the  kingdom,  in  all  the  world, 
for  a  testimony  unto  all  nations.  It  tells  of  a 
tribulation, 'unequaled  for  Its  severity,  either 
before  or  after  it,  and  which  seems  to  be 
meant  by  the  prophet  Daniel,  where  he  says, 
"  And  there  shall  be  a  time  of  trouble,  such  as 
never  was  since  there  was  a  nation,  even  to 
that  same  time  ;  and,  at  that  time  Thy  people 
shall  be  delivered,  every  one  that  shall  be 
found  written  In  the  book."  (12  :  i).  It  tells 
of  wide-spread  religious  Indifference,  and  of 
absorption  in  the  things  of  this  life,  so  that,  at 
length,  it  will  be  as  It  was  In  the  days  before 
the  flood  ;  men,  everywhere,  eating  and  drink- 
ing, buying  and  selling,  planting  and  building, 
marrying  and  giving  In  marriage,  with  almost 


118  The  Blessed  Hope. 

no  spiritual  care,  until  the  great  sound  of  the 
trumpet  startles  them  Into  thought  and  feel- 
ing. It  further  declares  that  "  Immediately 
after  the  tribulation  of  those  days,  the  sun 
shall  be  darkened  and  the  moon  shall  not  sflve 
her  light ;  and  the  stars  shall  fall  from  heaven, 
and  the  powers  of  heaven  shall  be  shaken  ;" 
and  then,  in  the  midst  of  these  things  the  Son 
of  Man  shall  come.  Such  Is  the  picture  which 
the  divine  Lord  gives  of  the  earthly  panorama, 
from  the  time  of  His  public  passion  to  the 
time  of  His  public  crowning.  Who  can  see 
in  it  the  millennium  ?  Where  across  Its  deep 
darkness  shines  the  wondrous  glory  of  those 
thousand  years  1  Nay,  where  is  there  one 
gleam  of  that  glory,  until  It  flashes  from  the 
presence  of  the  Lord  himself,  as  He  comes  in 
the  clouds  of  heaven  for  judgment  and  to 
reign. 

THE    SLEEPING    VIRGINS. 
(Matt.  25:  I-13). 

To    Illustrate    and    impress     this     solemn 
prophecy,    the    Lord   Immediately   added  the 


Question  of  Time — Continued.  119 

parable  of  the  virgins,  the  parable  of  the  tal- 
ents, and  a  most  impressive  description  of  the 
judgment  to  come.  With  this  His  public  minis- 
try ended.  The  parable  of  the  virgins  sheds 
a  strong  light  on  the  present  inquiry.  Glance 
at  it,  with  this  reference  : 

"  Then  shall  the  kingdom  of  heaven  be 
likened  unto  ten  virgins,  which  took  their 
lamps,  and  went  forth  to  meet  the  Bride- 
groom." 

Then.  When  }  While  the  Bridegroom  is 
gone.  Not  necessarily  and  only  at  the  close  of 
this  age,  but  also  along  its  whole  course,  when- 
ever the  Lord's  servants  shall  say  in  their 
heart,  The  Lord  delayeth  His  coming,  and 
shall  therefore  give  freer  scope  to  the  lusts  of 
the  flesh  and  the  world.  This  unbelief  may 
become  deeper,  as  the  supreme  hour  draws 
nigh,  but  how  much  has  it  characterized  the 
Church  of  the  past.  With  what  mournful 
power  does  it  hold  and  benumb  the  Church  of 
to-day  ! 

And  who  are  the  virgins  ?     Can   there  be 


120  The  Blessed  Hope. 

a  doubt  ?  Ten  is  the  number  of  complete- 
ness. Paul  wrote  of  the  Church  in  Corinth 
"  as  a  chaste  virgin,  espoused  unto  Christ." 
The  ten  virgins,  therefore,  represent  the 
Church  of  the  Lord  among  men  ;  the  visible 
Church.  Some  of  these  virgins  have  the  true 
divine  life  in  their  souls,  and,  therefore,  the 
essential  preparation  for  meeting  the  Bride- 
groom. Some  of  them  have  not  this  life,  and, 
therefore,  as  the  result  shows,  have  not  this 
preparation.  They  are  alike  called  virgins, 
because  of  their  common  profession  ;  and  to 
the  extent  of  this  profession  they  are  alike 
espoused  unto  Christ.  He  is  the  Bridegroom. 
But  He  is  absent.  He  has  gone  away  to 
receive  a  kingdom.  In  due  time  He  will 
return.  To  the  first  disciples,  it  was  a  sad 
moment  when  He  said,  I  go  away,  even 
though  He  added,  I  will  come  again.  The 
words  filled  them  with  sorrow.  And  when 
they  stood  gazing  upward  until  the  cloud 
received  Him  from  their  sight,  their  most 
earnest  hope  was  that  His  return  would  be 


Question  of  Titne  —  Continued.  121 

soon.  And,  when  presently  they  found  them- 
selves, as  sheep  among  wolves,  and  persecu- 
tion began,  and  its  fires  became  fiercer  and  still 
more  fierce,  O  !  how  they  yearned  for  the 
Lord  to  come.  Their  loins  were  girded,  and 
their  lamps  trimmed  and  burning.  But  the 
Bridegroom  delayed.  Disappointment,  it  may 
be,  touched  the  nerve  of  faith.  The  terrible 
storms  around  them  grew  less  terrible.  In- 
stead of  scoffs,  prisons,  flames,  there  gradually 
came  respect,  honor,  influence,  even  the  throne 
and  crown  of  this  world.  By  some  process,, 
whether  this  or  that,  it  was  soon  enough  true 
of  the  virgins  that  "  they  all  slumbered  and 
slept."  Men  may  question  the  exact  degree 
of  the  insensibility  thus  indicated,  but  it  is 
positive  and  deep,  especially  with  reference  to 
the  coming  of  the  Bridegroom. 

Have  the  virgins  awaked  .^^  When  will  they 
awake  ?  How  long  will  they  still  slumber 
and  sleep  .^  How  long  will  the  Church  of  the 
Lord  remain  in  this  strange  spiritual  insensi- 
bility ?      Turn    to    the    parable.      It   answers,. 


122  The  Blessed  Hope. 

while  the  Bridegroom  tarries ;  up  to  the  very 
moment  of  His  appearance.  They  are  roused 
only  by  the  midnight  cry,  "  Behold  the  Bride- 
groom cometh,  go  ye  out  to  meet  Him."  Will 
you  insist  that  the  millennium  must  come  and 
go  before  the  return  of  the  Bridegroom  ? 
Then  the  virgins  will  slumber  and  sleep  through 
all  that  illustrious  period.  While  those  scenes 
surpassing  fable  which  Isaiah  and  his  fellow 
prophets  so  vividly  depict  are  opening  on 
every  side,  while  the  full  beams  of  the  latter 
day  of  glory  are  spreading  holy  beauty  and 
gladness  all  around,  and  the  mountain  of  the 
Lord's  house  is  established  in  the  tops  of  the 
mountains,  the  virgins,  the  Church  espoused 
unto  Christ,  will  be  sunk  in  this  deep  spiritual 
insensibility  !  Is  this  simply  and  absolutely  im- 
possible }  Then  there  can  be  no  millennium 
before  the  Bridegroom  comes. 

TIMES     OF    RESTITUTION. 
(Acts  3:  19-21). 

The  Lamb  of  God  has   now  been   offered. 
The  resurrection  has  taken  place,  and  He  who 


Question  of  Time  —  Continued.  123 

died  has  thus  been  declared  to  be  the  Son  of 
God  with  power.  He  has  ascended  on  high, 
leading  captivity  captive,  and  given  gifts  to 
men.  He  has  sent  down  upon  His  servants 
the  Holy  Ghost,  in  the  extraordinary  manifes- 
tations of  the  day  of  Pentecost,  and  in  that 
permanent  presence,  in  which  He  will  abide 
with  the  Church  until  the  Lord  himself  shall 
return.  Peter  is  preaching  his  second  recorded 
sermon.  Deeply  moved  by  the  healing  of  the 
lame  man  at  the  gate  Beautiful  of  the  temple, 
the  people  are  crowding  around  the  two 
apostles  in  Solomons  porch.  He  disclaims 
for  himself  and  John  the  merit  of  that  mighty 
work,  and  the  power  by  which  it  was  wrought. 
He  tells  them  that  Jesus  was  the  Healer;  that 
Jesus  is  the  Prince  of  Life,  the  Holy  One  and 
the  Just;  and  that  in  Him  alone  is  salvation. 
"  Repent,  therefore,  He  cries,  Oh  !  ye  men  of 
Israel,  and  be  converted  for  the  blotting  out 
of  your  sins  ;  so  that  the  times  of  refreshing 
shall  come  from  the  presence  of  the  Lord,  and 
He  shall  send  Jesus  Christ,  which  before  was 


124  The  Blessed  Hope. 

preached  unto  you  ;  whom  the  heaven  must 
receive,  until  the  times  of  restitution  of  all 
things,  which  God  hath  spoken  by  the  mouth 
of  all  His  holy  prophets  since  the  world  be- 
gan." As  the  discourse  moves  thus  earnestly 
and  grandly  on,  the  apostles  are  put  under 
sudden  arrest,  and  spend  the  night  In  prison. 
Examine  these  words.  They  present  a 
cluster  of  great  thoughts,  every  one  of  which 
merits  the  most  careful  attention. 

1.  By  the  same  Spirit  who  dwelt  In  the 
prophets,  Peter  renews  the  prophecy  of  "  the 
times  of  refreshing."  They  had  not  been 
realized  In  the  history  of  the  Church  up  to  his 
day.  He  means  those  signal  times  of  spiritual 
triumph,  rest  and  joy,  which  Christian  faith 
and  hope  look  forward  to  as  the  mlllenlum. 

2.  As  Paul  affirms  that  the  destruction  of 
the  wicked  will  issue  "  from  the  presence  of 
the  Lord,  when  He  shall  come  to  be  glorified 
in  His  saints,"  so  Peter  also  teaches  that  "the 
times  of  refreshing  "  will  come — whatever  may 
be    true  of   creature  agencies  and   powers — 


Question  of  Time — Continued.  125 

"  from  the  presence  of  the  Lord,"  at  the  same 
coming. 

3.  He  also  teaches  that  the  coming  of  these 
times  of  refreshing  depends,  in  some  sense 
and  degree,  on  the  repentance  and  conversion 
of  the  Jewish  people  ;  for  the  true  and  only- 
defensible  rendering  of  his  words  is,  "  Repent 
ye,  therefore,  and  be  converted  unto  the 
blotting  out  of  your  sins,  so  that,  or  in  order 
that,  the  times  of  refreshing  may  come."  Paul, 
doubtless,  referred  to  the  same  thing  when  he 
wrote,  "  Through  their  fall  salvation  is  come 
to  the  Gentiles.  But  then,  if  the  casting 
away  of  them  be  the  reconciling  of  the  world, 
what  shall  the  receiving  of  them  be  but  life 
from  the  dead  ?  " 

4.  The  apostle,  moreover,  connects  "  the 
times  of  refreshing,"  chronologically,  with  the 
sending  of  Jesus  Christ,  whom  the  heaven  has 
received.  This  sending  of  Jesus  Christ  can- 
not be  the  first  sending.  That  had  already 
occurred  when  Peter  thus  spoke.  The  Lord 
had  both   come  and  gone.      Peter  had  seen 


126  Tlie  Blessed  Hope. 

Him  and  lived  with  Him.  He  had  heard 
Him,  and  believed  on  Him.  His  own  eyes 
had  followed  Him  as  He  went  up  into  heaven 
whence  He  came.  This  sending,  therefore, 
must  be  the  coming  in  glory. 

5.  When  will  this  coming  in  glory  be  7 
Peter  gives  a  most  certain  answer  when  he 
says,  "  Whom  the  heaven  must  receive,  until 
the  times  of  restitution  of  all  things,  which  God 
hath  spoken  by  the  mouth  of  all  His  holy 
prophets."  How  explicit  and  conclusive  !  "The 
times  of  restitution  "  and  "  the  times  of  re- 
freshing" are  not  only  contemporaneous;  they 
also  coalesce.  The  differing  forms  of  ex- 
pression point  at  differing  aspects  of  the  same 
times.  "  The  times  of  restitution "  include 
"the  times  of  refreshing."  "The  times  of  re- 
freshing "  flow  from  and  are  a  part  of  "  the 
times  of  restitution."  They  are  now  prophecy. 
They  will  become  history,  in  that  great  period 
currently  called  the  millennium.  Peter,  there- 
fore, really  says,  that  Jesus  Christ  is  to  remain 


Question  of  Time  —  Continued.  12T 

where  He  now  is — in  the  heaven — on  the 
throne  of  the  Father,  until  the  millennium^ 
There  can,  therefore,  be  no  millennium  before 
the  Lord  shall  come.  Some,  indeed,  who 
spiritualize,  as  it  is  called,  these  apostolic  state- 
ments, insist  that  until  the  times  of  restitution 
means  during  those  times.  This,  however,  is 
not  the  natural  and  obvious  meaning  of  the 
word  until.  It  can  be  gained  in  this  place 
only  by  pressure.  Besides  which,  it  does  not 
meet  the  want  of  those  who  thus  press  it. 
Their  theory  is  that  the  second  coming  of  the 
Lord  cannot  occur  until  after  the  millennium. 
But  if  they  will  say  that  Peter  here  means  by, 
until  the  millennium,  until  after  it,  they  do  not 
interpret  the  word  of  God ;  they  wrest  it  ;  and 
they  wrest  this  particular  Scripture  out  of  per- 
fect harmony  with  every  other  Scripture  which 
directly  touches  the  time  of  the  Lord's  com- 
ing. The  heaven  whither  the  Lord  has  gone, 
will  retain  Him  until  "  the  times  of  restitution." 
He  will  then  come   again  ;  and   inaugurating 


128  The  Blessed  Hope. 


those  times,  He  will  fill  them  with  the  bene- 
dictions and  all  the  glories  of  His  kingly- 
presence  and  power. 

THE    GREAT    APOSTASY. 
(2  Thess.  2:  1-12). 

It  is  possible  that  Saul  of  Tarsus  heard  this 
preaching  of  Simon  Peter,  in  Solomon's  porch. 
It  is  probable  that  he  was  present  in  the  Coun- 
cil, when  Stephen,  with  words  of  the  Holy 
Ghost,  cut  to  their  heart  those  who  heard  him. 
It  is  certain  that  he  saw  and  took  part  in  the 
stoning  and  death  of  the  first  martyr.  Pres- 
ently, however,  he  also  bows  down  in  peni- . 
tence,  in  faith,  in  adoring  love  before  Jesus 
Christ.  From  that  moment  his  life  is  a  conse- 
cration. Damascus,  Arabia,  Jerusalem,  An- 
tioch,  Cyprus,  the  whole  of  accessible  Asia 
hear  him  proclaiming  Jesus  Christ  as  the  One 
Saviour  of  lost  men.  At  the  bidding  of  the 
Spirit,  he  then  crosses  the  ^gean  Sea  into 
Europe,  and  there  lifts  up  the  banner,  and 
tells  and  tells  again  the  wondrous  story  of  the 


Question  of  Time  —  Continued.  129 

cross.  At  PhillppI  they  beat  him  with  many 
stripes,  and  cast  him,  covered  with  blood,  into 
prison,  but  he  gathers  a  Church  of  Christ. 
Released,  he  goes  thence  to  Thessalonica, 
and  there  again  from  souls  that  were  dead 
raises  a  living  body  of  them  that  believe.  To 
this  Church  he  sends  his  first  apostolic  letters  ; 
the  first  of  those  which  were  to  be  a  perma- 
nent part  of  the  divine  revelation.  In  one  of 
these  letters  he  puts  on  record  a  most  notable 
prophecy.  There  will  be,  he  says,  within  the 
Church  of  Christ,  an  apostasy,  the  apostasy. 
This  apostasy  will  at  length  head  up  in  the 
man  of  sin,  the  son  of  perdition.  It  will  begin 
unobserved.  It  will  advance  gradually.  It 
will  become  most  unrighteous  and  deceiving. 
It  will  gain  Satanic  craft,  power  and  success. 
The  apostle  had,  indeed,  already  preached  this 
to  the  Thessalonians  before  thus  writing  it. 
"  Remember  ye  not,  that  when  I  was  yet  with 
you,  I  told  you  these  things  }  "  He  recurred 
to  it  now,  to  arrest  and  crush  out  an  error 
just   rising   in    the    Church.        Somehow   the 

lO 


130  The  Blessed  Hope. 

Christians  in  Thessalonica  conceived  that  the 
day  of  Christ  had  come  ;  that  its  beginning 
was  actually  upon  them.  Not  so  ;  said  Paul. 
The  apostasy  of  which  I  have  told  you,  must 
first  come,  and  the  man  of  sin  be  revealed. 
Meantime,  the  Lord  will  remain  in  the  heaven 
which  received  Him. 

The  apostasy !  A  falling  away  in  the 
Church  of  our  Lord !  When,  thou  man  of 
God,  will  this  be  ?  The  Spirit  had  not  made 
known  the  time  of  its  manifestation.  Paul, 
therefore,  could  not  declare  it.  He  only  said, 
"  The  mystery  of  iniquity  doth  already  work." 
The  seeds  of  the  terrible  evil  are  even  now 
planted.  The  secret  leaven  is  diffusing  itself. 
But  at  present  there  is  a  restraining  power. 
When  this  power  shall  be  taken  away  the 
apostasy  will  begin  to  be  manifest.  The 
restraining  power  was  the  power  of  pagan 
Rome.  So  all  the  Fathers  believed,  and 
rightly.  When  this  power  gave  way  to 
nominally  Christian  Rome,  the  development 
of  the  evil,  which   had   been  repressed,  was 


Question  of  Time  —  Continued.  131 

visible  and  rapid.  The  spirit  of  the  world  in 
the  Church,  secularity,  ambition,  corruption 
ran  riot,  and  all  too  soon  the  man  of  sin  sat 
enthroned  in  the  temple  of  God.  There  have 
been  and  are  other  apostasies  in  the  visible 
Church,  but  the  history  of  this  apostasy  is  the 
history  of  Papal  Rome. 

How  long  is  this  apostasy  to  last.?  What 
period  in  the  life  of  the  Church  and  the  world 
is  it  destined  to  cover  }  When  will  its  mighty 
and  malignant  power  end?  Listen:  "Whom 
the  Lord  Jesus  shall  consume  with  the  spirit  of 
His  mouth,  and  destroy  with  the  brightness  of 
His  coming."  What  coming.?  There  can  be 
but  one  answer  —  His  second  coming.  The 
destruction  of  the  man  of  sin  is  to  come  from 
the  personal  presence  of  the  Lord.  That 
presence  will  be  as  a  consuming  fire.  Chrys- 
ostom  said :  "  As  fire  in  its  progress  con- 
sumes little  insects  by  its  heat  before  it 
touches  them,  so  the  mere  approach  of  Christ 
will  be  enough  to  consume  Anti-Christ." 
Nothing,  however,  but  this  will    do   it.      He 


132  The  Blessed  Hope. 

will  still  sit  in  the  temple  of  God,  making  his 
impious  pretensions,  and  exercising  his  baleful 
influence,  until  the  brightness  of  the  coming 
of  the  Lord  shall  destroy  him.  Then  only 
will  sound  forth  that  exulting  cry :  "  Rejoice 
over  her,  thou  heaven,  and  ye  saints  and 
apostles  and  prophets,  for  God  hath  avenged 
you  on  her!"  (Rev.  i8:  20.)  Until  then, 
therefore,  there  can  be  no  millennium. 

THE    FIRST    RESURRECTION. 
(Rev.  20 :  4-6.) 

To  these  testimonies  of  Peter  and  Paul,  the 
beloved  John  adds  that  which  was  made 
known  to  him  on  Patmos.  There,  when  in 
the  Spirit,  on  the  Lord's  day,  he  saw  Satan 
bound  and  shut  up  for  a  thousand  years — i.  e., 
during  the  millennium.  Immediately  upon 
this  suppression  of  Satan,  he  saw  those  who 
had  died  in  Christ,  and  as  true  witnesses  for 
Christ,  living  and  reigning  with  Him  through 
the  same  thousand  years,  or  through  the  mil- 
lennium.    He  also   saw  that  the  rest  of  the 


Question  of  Time  —  Continued.  133 

dead — i  e.,  those  who  were  not  dead  in  Christ 
-r— did  not  then  live  again,  but  remained  in 
their  graves  until  the  millennium  was  past. 
This  living  again,  and  exaltation  of  the  holy 
dead,  at  the  beginning  of  the  thousand  years 
or  the  millennium,  he  designates  as  the  first 
resurrection.    - 

Surely  this  record  of  John  would  seem  to 
be  plain  and  decisive.  It  is  a  record  of  literal 
facts,  although  it  is  made  in  figurative  language. 
Lest,  however,  because  of  the  figures,  the 
meaning  of  the  Spirit  might  not  be  clearly 
seen,  there  is  added  an  explanation.  Just  as 
in  the  first  chapter  of  the  book,  the  seven 
stars  and  the  seven  candlesticks  are  symbols, 
and  the  Spirit  explains  them  thus  : — The  seven 
candlesticks  are  the  seven  Churches,  and  the 
seven  stars  are  the  seven  angels  or  pastors  of 
the  Churches — so  here,  the  living  again  and 
enthronement  of  those  who  are  Christ's,  when 
the  millennium  begins,  is  explained  to  be  the 
first  resurrection.  Of  course,  this  resurrection 
is  wrought  by  Christ.     No  voice  but  His  can 


134  The  Blessed  Hoj^e. 


penetrate  the  graves  and  quicken  the  dead. 
As,  therefore,  this  resurrection  takes  place  be- 
fore the  millennium,  or  at  Its  opening,  so  the 
second  coming  of  Christ  must  take  place  then, 
inasmuch  as,  according  to  Holy  Scripture,  this 
coming  Is  to  b'e  gloriously  signalized  by  this 
resurrection. 

But,  Is  not  this  doctrine  of  the  first  resurrec- 
tion a  new  doctrine  }  What  if  It  were  so  ? 
God  has  now,  at  least,  clearly  revealed  It.  It 
is,  therefore,  true.  All  divine  revelation  has 
been  gradual,  from  less  to  more.  Each 
doctrine  in  this  revelation,  has  been  put  there, 
at  first,  in  Its  seed  form.  The  growth  of  the 
doctrine  has  corresponded  to  the  progress  of 
the  revelation. 

This,  however,  is  not  a  new  doctrine  in 
either  the  history  of  the  Church  or  in  the 
revelations  of  the  eternal  Spirit.  Alm^ost  the 
whole  body  of  the  saints  in  the  New  Testa- 
ment period  and  in  the  period  immediately 
succeeding,  believed  in,  and  rejoiced  In  view  of, 
the  first  resurrection.     How  far  this  faith  may 


Question  of  Time  —  Continued.  135 

have  rested  on  the  oral  teaching  of  Inspired 
men  we  do  not  know ;  but  it  also  had  an 
ample  ground  in  that  which  is  written.  Note 
some  of  the  data  : 

1.  There  will  be  a  resurrection  of  the  dead ; 
and  of  all  the  dead.  This  the  whole  Church 
believes,  and  has  believed  from  the  beginning, 
for  so  the  Holy  One  most  clearly  reveals. 

2.  Whenever,  in  the  Scriptures,  the  resurrec- 
tions of  the  righteous  and  the  wicked  come 
into  view  together,  that  of  the  righteous  dead 
invariably  has  the  precedence  in  the  order  of 
mention. 

3.  In  illustrating  and  commending  that  bene- 
ficence which  seeks,  and  which  has,  no  recom- 
pense from  men,  the  Saviour  said:  —  "Thou 
shalt  be  blessed,  for  thou  shalt  be  recompensed 
at  the  resurrection  of  the  just."  There  is  to 
be  then  "  the  resurrection  of  the  just."  It  im- 
plies as  its  contrast  a  resurrection  of  the  un- 
just.    (Luke  14 :   14). 

4.  Observe  also,  this  :  "  The  children  of  this 
world,"  said  the  Saviour,  "  marry  and  are  given 


136  The  Blessed  Hope. 

in  marriage.  But,  they  which  shall  be  ac- 
counted worthy  to  obtain  that  world  " — i.  e.,  the 
next  age  or  dispensation — "  and  the  resurrec- 
tion from  the  dead,  neither  marry  nor  are  given 
in  marriage."  (Luke  20:  35).  What  almost 
novel  ideas  to  us,  who  so  carelessly  read,  even 
Holy  Scripture.  Note  them.  There  is,  indeed, 
to  be  a  resurrection  of  all  the  dead,  irrespect- 
ive of  moral  character  and  desert.  Here, 
however,  a  class  of  men  is  brought  into  view, 
who,  in  distinction  from  the  children  of  this 
world,  will  be  deemed  worthy  to  obtain  the 
resurrection.  What  resurrection  ?  Not  merely 
the  resurrection  of  the  dead.  The  words  of 
the  Saviour  here  are  definite;  they  say,  the 
resurrection  which  is  out  of,  or,  from  among 
the  dead.  It  is  that  resurrection  which  will 
still  leave  some  of  the  dead  in  their  graves.  It 
is  plainly,  therefore,  a  first  resurrection. 

5.  Again.  In  his  most  interesting  presenta- 
tion of  this  subject,  in  i  Cor.  15  :  1-58,  the 
apostle  Paul  re-affirms  the  resurrection  of  the 
dead,  and  of   all  the  dead.     He  also  makes 


Question  of  Time  —  Continued.  137 

some  very  clear  distinctions  with  reference  to 
it.  There  is  an  appointed  order.  Every  one 
will  be  raised  in  his  own  class  or.  company. 
Christ  is  already  risen  as  "  the  first  fruits  of 
them  that  slept."  Those  who  are  dead  in 
Christ  will  be  raised  in  their  order  when 
Christ  shall  come.  The  apostle  does  not 
definitely  say  when  the  rest  of  the  dead  will 
be  raised  in  their  order,  but  his  statements 
Irresistibly  imply  that  it  will  not  be  then — t.  e., 
when  the  dead  in  Christ  arise.  It  will  be 
after  that.  The  resurrection  of  the  saints, 
therefore,  at  Christ's  coming  relative  to  that 
of  the  rest  of  the  dead  who  are  not  raised 
then,  is  a  first  resurrection. 

6.  In  his  beautiful  letter  to  the  church  at 
Philippi,  the  first  fruit  of  his  evangelical  labor 
in  Europe,  Paul  expresses  a  most  sincere 
desire  with  reference  to  his  own  personal 
resurrection.  Above  everything  else  he  wants 
to  know  Christ ;  he  wants  to  win  Christ ;  he 
wants  to  be  found  in  Christ  and  to  be  clothed 
with    His  righteousness.      He  wants  also  to 


138  The  Blessed  Hope. 

know  the  power  of  Christ's  resurrection  and 
the  fellowship  of  Christ's  sufferings,  and  to  be 
made  conformable  to  Christ's  death,  '*  If,  by 
any  means,"  he  adds,  "  I  might  attain  unto  the 
resurrection  of  the  dead."  His  whole  soul  is 
on  fire  with  reference  to  this  momentous 
result. 

What  now  Is  Paul's  meaning.^  He  is  per- 
fectly sure  of  a  resurrection.  Whether  he 
knows  Christ  or  not,  he  will  certainly,  at  some 
time,  come  up  out  of  the  grave.  Why,  then, 
this  so  vehement  desire  ?  What  does  he  so 
yearningly  want?  Not,  a  resurrection,  but 
the  resurrection.  Nor  does  he  merely  want 
the  resurrection  of  the  dead.  This  rendering 
does  not  express  the  heart  of  Paul  or  the 
mind  of  the  Spirit.  The  words  here  are  like 
the  words,  just  noted,  which  the  Saviour  used 
of  those  who  shall  be  accounted  worthy  of  the 
age  or  dispensation  to  come.  Paul's  Irrepres- 
sible longing  was  for  that  resurrection  which 
shall  be  out  of,  or,  from  among  the  dead ;  that 
resurrection    which    will    leave    some    of    the 


Question  of  Time  —  Continued.  139 

dead  not  raised;  the  resurrection  of  the  just; 
the  resurrection  unto  life ;  the  resurrection  of 
those  who  are  Christ's  at  His  coming  ;  in  a 
word,  the  first  resurrection. 

We  return  thus  to  the  testimony  of  John. 
It  Is  given  In  figure.  It  Is  therefore  new  as 
to  form.  In  this  form,  however,  It  sets  forth 
precisely  the  same  facts,  which,  In  literal  terms, 
are  attested  by  the  apostle  Paul,  and  by  the 
divine  Lord  Himself  The  living  again  of  the 
saintly  dead,  before  the  millennium,  Is  the 
first  resurrection.  They  are  raised  then  from 
among  the  dead.  The  rest  of  the  dead  do  not 
live  again  until  the  millennium  Is  past.  The 
first  resurrection  will  be  wrought  by  Christ  at 
His  coming.  His  coming,  therefore,  must  pre- 
cede the  millennium.  And  so  the  continuous 
voice  of  Holy  Scripture  bids  us  look  for  the 
latter  day  of  glory,  only  when  the  King  of 
glory  shall  come  In  befitting  array  to  execute 
judgment  In  the  earth,  and  to  sit  upon  the 
throne  of  His  glory. 


140  The  Blessed  Hove. 


THE    THRONE    OF    HIS    GLORY. 
(Matt.  19  :  26;  25  :  31). 

The  throne  of  His  glory.  What  a  con- 
trast this  will  be  to  the  cross  of  His  shame! 
But  He  foresaw  it  and  foretold  It.  It  was  a  part 
of  the  joy  set  before  Him.  When,  therefore, 
He  was  entering  into  the  darkness  and  death 
of  the  cross,  He  lifted  up  His  voice  and  spoke 
to  the  disciples  of  His  glorious  throne. 
"When  the  Son  of  Man,"  He  said,  "shall 
come  in  His  glory,  and  all  the  holy  angels 
with  Him,  then  shall  He  sit  upon  the  throne  of 
His  glory."  So  a  few  days  earlier  when  Peter 
asked  Him,  "What  therefore  shall  we  have 
who  have  forsaken  all  and  followed.  Thee  7  " 
"Jesus  said  unto  them,  Verily  I  say  unto  you, 
that  in  the  Palingenesia  " — the  times  of  resti- 
tution, the  millennial  times — "  when  the  Son 
of  Man  shall  sit  upon  the  throne  of  His 
glory,  ye  also  shall  sit  on  twelve  thrones,  judg- 
ing the  twelve  tribes  of  Israel." 

There  can  be  no  doubt  that  the  coming  of 
the  Son  of  Man  in  His  glory,  and  all  the  holy 


Question  of  Time  —  Continued.  141 

angels  with  Him,  Is  His  second  coming.  At 
that  coming,  therefore,  He  will  sit  upon  the 
throne  of  His  glory.  And,  as  we  shall  see, 
He  will  not  sit  upon  the  throne  of  His  glory 
until  then.  The  Pallngenesia,  therefore,  can- 
not have  Its  realization  before  the  Lord  shall 
come  ;  for  In  the  Pallngenesia  He  will  sit  upon 
the  throne  of  His  glory ;  or  His  glorious 
throne.  His  throne,  not  the  throne  of 
another.  His  throne  as  the  Son  and  heir  of 
David  ;  His  throne  as  the  triumphant  Mes- 
siah ;  His  throne  as  the  God-Man  Redeemer 
ruling  over  His  redeemed;  that  throne,  of 
which  the  immutable  Word  says,  it  shall  en- 
dure forever  and  ever.' 

But  is  not  Christ  now  upon  His  throne  .^^ 
Many  so  affirm,  because  by  the  spiritualizing 
process  they  obliterate  clear  and  divine  dis- 
tinctions, but  the  Scriptures  answer.  No ; 
Christ  is  now  upon  the  Father's  throne.  Hear 
the  voice  of  the  witnesses.  In  foresight  of  the 
Messiah's  exaltation  the  Psalmist  wrote,  "  The 
Lord  said  unto  my  Lord,  sit  thou  at  my  right 


142  The  Blessed  Hope. 

hand."  It  was  the  voice  of  Jehovah  the 
Father  to  David's  Lord,  or  the  Messiah. 
(Matt.  22  :  41-46).  He  shall  sit  there  how 
long?  Forever?  No.  "  Sit  Thou  at  my  right 
hand  until  I  make  thine  enemies  thy  footstool." 
(Ps.  no:  i).  The  Messiah,  therefore,  or  the 
risen  and  ascended  Christ  was  to  sit  at  the 
right  hand  of  God  the  Father ;  or  upon 
the  Fathers  throne.  His  sitting  there,  how- 
ever, was  not  to  be  permanent.  It  was  for  a 
definite  purpose,  and  a  limited  and  specified 
time.  It  would  end  when  the  enemies  of  the 
Messiah  should  be  subdued.  This  most  ex- 
plicit voice  of  the  Spirit  is  renewed  and  pro- 
longed in  the  New  Testament.  Jesus  said  to 
the  Sanhedrim,  "  Hereafter  ye  shall  seethe  Son 
of  Man  sitting  on  the  right  hand  of  power." 
(Matt.  26  :  64).  The  evangelist  Mark  said, 
*'  So  then,  after  the  Lord  had  spoken  unto 
them.  He  was  received  up  into  heaven,  and  sat 
on  the  right  hand  of  God."  (Mark  16:  20). 
Stephen  the  first  martyr  said,  "  Behold  I  see 
the   heavens    opened   and   the    Son    of  Man 


Question  of  Time —  Continued.  143 


standing  on  the  right  hand   of  God."     (Acts 
7 :  36).     The  apostle  Paul  said,  "  He  raised 
Him  from  the  dead,  and  set  Him  at  His  own 
right  hand"     "  Who  is  even  at  the  right  hand 
of  God."     "  Seek  those  things  which  are  above 
where  Christ  sitteth  on  the  right  hand  of  God." 
"  This  man,  after  He  had  offered  one  sacrifice 
for  sins  forever,  sat  down  on  the  right  hand  of 
God."     "  Who,  for  the  joy  that  was  set  before' 
Him,  endured  the  cross,  despising  the  shame, 
and    is   set  down  on    the    right   hand   of  the 
throne    of  God."     (Eph.   1:  20 ;  Rom.  8  :  30; 
Col.  3:1;  Heb.  10  :  12  ;  12  :  2).     The  apostle 
Peter  also  said,   '  Who   is  gone   into   heaven, 
and  is  on  the  right  hand  of  God."     (i  Pet.  3  : 
22).     Such  is  the  concord  of  the  gospels  and 
the  epistles.      They   alike   tell  us  that  Jesus 
Christ  is  at  the  right  hand  of  God,  or  on  the 
throne    of    God;    and    that    He   will    remain 
there,  (i   Cor.  15:  24;  Heb.   10:   13,)  just  as 
the  Psalmist  foretold,  until   His  enemies  are 
made  His  footstool.     To  be  on  the  throne  of 
God  is  to  have  and  to  exercise  the  authority 


144:  The  Blessed  Hope. 

and  power  which  pertain  to  that  throne.  But 
more  than  this.  The  first  Christian  century- 
runs  its  course.  It  is  seventy  years  almost 
since  the  risen  Christ  ascended.  The  heavens 
open  and  the  voice  of  the  Lord  himself  comes 
resounding  thence  :  "  To  him  that  overcometh, 
will  I  grant  to  sit  with  Me  in  My  throne,  even 
as  I  also  overcame  and  am  set  down  with  the 
Father  in  His  throne;"  words  which  ought  to 
have  been  the  battle-cry  of  the  Church  along 
the  ages. 

Mark  them.  The  Son  of  Man,  the  Messiah 
overcame.  Who  can  express  or  concieve  the 
greatness  either  of  His  conflict  or  His  victory, 
He  is  therefore  set  down  ;  not  upon  His  own 
throne,  but  with  the  Father  in  His  throne. 
What  does  this  mean  1  What  can  it  mean,  ex- 
cept that  He  is  now  invested  with,  and  exercises 
the  authority  and  power  which  belong  to,  that 
throne — the  throne  of  the  Father — the  throne 
of  the  Godhead.  In  what  character  and  rela- 
tion is  Christ  thus  enthroned  1  Not  as  the 
only  begotten  and  almighty  Son,  co-essential 


Question  of  Time  —  Continued,  145 

and  co-eternal  with  the  Father  and  the  Spirit, 
for  in  this  view  His  session  there  must  be 
eternal.  He  sits  in  the  Father's  throne  as  He 
who,  In  the  flesh,  fought  with  the  God  of  this 
world  and  all  his  confederate  hosts  and  over- 
came them.  It  Is  therefore  as  the  Christ,  the 
God-Man  Redeemer ;  a  dominion  therefore 
which  He  has,  not  of  essential  right,  but  of 
most  divine  gift.  "  All  power,"  He  himself 
said, just  as  He  went  up  on  high,  "Is  given 
unto  Me  in  heaven  and  in  earth."  The  power 
thus  given  He  now  exercises  from  the  throne 
of  the  Father  over  the  Church  and  over  the 
worlds;  over  the  worlds  with  reference  to  the 
Church.  At  the  appointed  time,  this  dominion 
of  Christ  will  end.  It  is  so  written.  His 
dominion  as  the  Son  of  God,  equal  with  the 
Father  and  the  Spirit  In  being  and  in  power 
and  glory,  will  never  end.  In  the  nature  of 
the  case  it  is  impossible.  His  dominion  also 
as  the  Son  of  Man,  the  Incarnate  word,  the 
conquering  and  exalted  Messiah  will  be  ever- 
lasting. This  is  affirmed  over  and  over  again 
11 


146  The  Blessed  Uojpe. 

by  the  revealing  Spirit.  But  this  Intermediate 
dominion,  which  as  the  Christ  He  now  exer- 
cises upon  the  throne  of  Godhead,  will  close 
when  the  end  for  which  it  exists  shall  be  ac- 
complished. It  will  be  delivered  to  God,  even 
the  Father.  The  Son  of  Man  will  then  sit 
upon  His  own  throne ;  the  throne  of  His 
glory.  This  will  be  as  He  told  us,  at  His 
second  coming.  His  saints,  moreover,  will 
reign  with  Him.  Having  overcome  they  will 
then  sit  with  Him  in  His  throne  ;as  He,  having 
overcome,  now  sits  with  the  Father  in  His 
throne.  Many  times  the  Scriptures  sound  out 
this  vast  promise.  They  love  to  repeat  it. 
When  Christ  thus  sits  upon  the  throne  of  His 
glory,  the  Palingenesia  will  have  come,  the 
regeneration — the  times  of  restitution  and 
refreshing  from  the  presence  of  the  Lord — 
the  latter  day  of  the  glory  of  the  Church  and 
her  mighty  King  upon  the  earth. 

What  Christ-loving  soul  will  not,  with  Mil- 
ton, cry  aloud,  "  Come  forth  out  of  thy  royal 
chambers,  O  Prince  of  the  Kings  of  the  earth. 


Question  of  Time — Continued.  147 

Put  on  the  visible  robes  of  thy  imperial 
majesty.  Take  up  that  unlimited  sceptre 
which  thy  almighty  Father  hath  given  thee ; 
for  now  the  voice  of  thy  Bride  calls  thee ; 
and  all  creatures  sigh  to  be  renewed  ?  "  And 
also  with  the  beloved  John,  as  in  the  Spirit  he 
closes  the  great  revelation  on  Patmos,  "  Come, 
Lord  Jesus,  come  quickly  ! " 

"  Come,  blessed  Lord,  bid  every  shore 
And  answering  island  sing 
The  praises  of  Thy  royal  name, 
And  own  Thee  as  their  King. 

Bid  the  whole  earth,  responsive  now 

To  the  bright  world  above. 
Break  forth  in  rapturous  strains  of  joy, 

In  memory  of  Thy  love. 

Lord,  Lord,  Thy  fair  creation  groans. 

The  air,  the  earth,  the  sea, 
In  unison  with  all  our  hearts, 

And  calls  aloud  for  Thee. 

Thine  was  the  cross,  with  all  its  fruits, 

Of  grace  and  peace  divine  ; 
Be  thine  the  crown  of  glory  now. 

The  palm  of  victory  thine." 

Uiri7BIlSIT7] 


Skil^ 


POWEE  AND  USE  OF  THIS 

HOPE. 


POWER  AND  USE  OF   THIS 

HOPE. 


» ♦« 


"  Every  man  that  hath  this  hope  i7i  Him,  purifieth  himself, 
even  as  He  is  pure."     (i  John  3/3). 


"  Till  the  day  dawn, 
And  the  Day-star  arise, 

Church  of  the  Living  God, 

Pursue  thy  upward  road  ; 

Look  not  behind,  nor  stray 

From  the  well-trodden  way. 

Be  not  ashamed  to  bear 

Thy  cross  on  earth,  nor  fear 

Reproach  and  poverty 

For  Him  who  died  for  thee. 

With  girded  loins  press  on, 

Till  the  reward  is  won  ; 

Think  of  thy  absent  Lord, 

Hold  fast  thy  plighted  word. 
Doff  not  the  weeds  of  widowhood,  nor  fear 
To  let  the  world,  through  which  thou  passest,  hear 
The  widow's  cry,  and  see  the  widow's  faithful  tear." 


^  I  ^  RUTH  is  to  the  soul  what  food  is  to  the 


body.     As  the  law,  therefore,  those  must 
grow  in  knowledge  who  would  grow  in  grace. 


152  The  Blessed  Hope. 

Each  particular  truth  has  its  own  fitness  and 
power  with  reference  to  the  spiritual  life  ;  but 
all  truth  in  due  combination  is  necessary  in 
order  to  "the  measure  of  the  stature  of  the 
fulness  of  Christ ;  "  and  that  "  the  man  of 
God  may  be  perfect,  thoroughly  furnished 
unto  to  all  good  works."  / 

The  Scriptures,  however,  give  prominence 
to  some  truths.  They  repeat  them  and  em- 
phasize them  as  of  special  moment.  What  is 
the  essential  story  of  the  Gospel }  It  is 
Immanuel — God  with  us  on  the  cross  and  in 
the  grave  ;  the  life  and  hope  of  the  world. 
Without  this  there  would  be  no  Gospel.  But 
suppose  the  Gospel  had  left  Immanuel  on  the 
cross,  or  in  the  grave.  Then  were  our  preach- 
ing vain,  and  your  faith  also  vain.  Christ 
risen  again  is  indispensable  to  any  saving 
power  of  Christ  crucified.  Christ  at  the  right 
hand  of  God  is  as  essential  as  Christ  slain  by 
the  hands  of  wicked  men.  His  coming  in 
weakness  and  sorrow  has  its   purposed   and 


Power  and  Use  of  this  Hope.  153 

true  end  in  His  coming  again  in  power  and  in 
great  glory. 

ITS    PLACE    IN    THE    BIBLE, 

Look  at  the  place  of  this  truth  in  the  Bible. 
The  preceding  pages  have  shown  how  the 
second  coming  of  the  Lord  enters  into  the 
substance  of  the  Old  Testament,  and  was 
the  faith  and  hope  of  the  prophets.  They 
have  also  shown  how  the  light  of  that  coming 
pours  itself  over  all  the  New  Testament;  and 
was  the  faith  and  hope  of  the  evanglists  and 
apostles.  The  Saviour  himself  often  spoke 
of  His  coming  glory,  and  on  the  Mount  of 
Transfiguration  gave  some  anticipatory  gleams 
of  it.  In  almost  His  last  words  in  the  Gospels, 
He  said,  "  I  will  come  again  and  receive  you 
unto  Myself;  that  where  I  am,  there  ye  may 
be  also."  The  Acts  open  with  the  testimony 
of  the  angels.  Scarcely  had  the  cloud  received 
the  ascending  Lord  from  human  sight,  when 
they  said,  "  This  same  Jesus   which  is  taken 


154  Tlie  Blessed  Hope. 

up  from  you  Into  heaven  shall  so  come  in  like 
manner,  as  ye  have  seen  Him  go  into  heaven." 
A  few  days  later,  and  while  Pentecostal 
wonders  were  all  around  them,  Peter  and 
John  are  looking  forward  and  telling  of  "the 
times  of  refreshing  from  the  presence  of 
the  Lord,"  and  of  "  the  times  of  restitution  of 
all  things"  in  the  future.  In  all  the  epistles, 
except  that  to  Philemon,  and  those  brief 
sentences,  composing  the  second  and  third 
epistles  of  John,  the  coming  of  the  Lord  has 
a  frequent  place,  and  this  not  merely  as  a  fact, 
but  as  a  fact  of  most  signal  moment,  and  as 
meant  to  exert  a  mighty  moral  power.  In  the 
first  two  letters  of  Paul,  those  to  the  Thessa- 
lonians,  every  chapter  rings  with  the  blessed 
sound.  In  the  last  two  letters  of  the  same 
apostle  the  same  heavenly  music  is  still  heard. 
Listen,  as  he  says  to  Titus  : 

"  The  grace  of  God  that  bringeth  salvation 
hath  appeared  unto  all  men,  teaching  us  that 
denying  ungodliness  and  worldly  lusts,  we 
should  live   soberly,  righteously,  and  godly  in 


Power  and  Use  of  this  Hope.  155 

this  present  world  ;  looking  for  that  blessed 
hope,  the  glorious  appearing  of  the  great 
God  and  our  Saviour  Jesus  Christ." 

Hear  him  also,  as  standing  at  the  very  point 
where  the  two  worlds  meet,  he  thus  pleads 
with  Timothy  : 

"  Watch  thou  in  all  things  ;  endure  afflic- 
tions ;  do  the  work  of  an  evangelist  ;  make 
full  proof  of  thy  ministry,  for  I  am  now  ready  to 
be  offered,  and  the  time  of  my  departure  is  at 
hand.  I  have  fought  a  good  fight ;  I  have 
finished  my  course ;  I  have  kept  the  faith  ; 
henceforth  there  is  laid  up  for  me  a  crown  of 
righteousness,  which  the  Lord  the  righteous 
Judge  shall  give  me  at  that  day  ;  and  not  to  me 
only,  but  unto  all  them  also  that  love  His 
appearing."  And  when  we  come  to  the 
Apocalypse,  what  is  it  from  beginning  to  end 
but  the  revelation  of  Jesus  Christ  in  His 
glory.  Such  is  the  teaching  on  this  point  of 
the  goodly  .fellowship  of  the  prophets,  and  of 
the  glorious  company  of  the  apostles.  For  the 
fi.rst  three  centuries  the  Church  cherished  it, 


156  The  Blessed  Hope. 

and  the  quality  and  power  of  her  faith  and 
hope  were  attested  by  the  blood  of  her  noble 
army  of  martyrs. 

Now  this  incorporation  in  the  Scriptures  of 
the  glorious  coming  of  the  Lord  ;  this  causing 
the  light  of  it  to  brighten  the  whole  record 
from  the  paradise  lost  to  the  paradise  restored, 
was  not  an  arbitrary  thing.  It  was  not  as  a 
mere  embellishment.  It  was  not  for  a  class 
of  Christian  men  and  women  whose  taste  or 
culture  might  be  pleased  by  this  so  glowing 
imagery  of  the  Spirit,  as  they  would  be  by 
the  fancies  and  decorations  of  a  great  poem. 
It  was  because  it  was  essential  to  the  com- 
pleteness of  the  divine  word,  and  to  the  high- 
est life  and  blessing  of  the  redeemed  Church. 
It  was  for  the  same  great  end  for  which  all 
supernatural  revelation  has  been  made,  and 
the  whole  ministry  of  that  revelation  has  been 
given  ;  "  for  the  perfecting  of  the  saints  ;  for 
the  edifying  of  the  body  of  Christ  till  we  all 
come  in  the  unity  of  the  faith  and  of  the 
knowledge  of  the  Son  of  God,  unto  a  perfect 


Power  and  Use  of  this  Ilojpe,  157 

man;"  that  the  individual  Christian  and  the 
collective  Church  may  be  fully  prepared  for 
work  and  conflict,  for  suffering  and  triumph. 

SPECIFICATIONS. 

Pass  on  from  this  general  view.  Beyond 
question,  the  Bible  teaches  the  great  doctrine 
of  the  glorious  coming  of  the  Lord.  This 
doctrine,  therefore,  must  enter  as  an  essential 
power  into  the  building  up  of  the  Christian 
character  and  life.  But,  how  do  the  Scriptures 
use  it  .f^  How  do  they  bring  it  from  the  ab- 
stract into  the  concrete,  from  doctrine  into 
practice  ?  What  applications  do  they  make  of 
it  to  the  every-day  needs  of  men  in  this 
world  .^  In  what  manner  does  the  Holy 
Ghost  press  upon  the  Bride  those  glorious 
certainties  connected  with  the  return  of  the 
Bridegroom  so  that  they  may  clothe  the 
present  with  their  own  beauty,  sacredness  and 
power.?     Take  some  specimens. 


158  The  Blessed  Hope. 

THE    SCOFFERS. 
(2  Tim.  3  :  1-8  ;  2  Pet.  3  :  3-10). 

The  Holy  One,  first  of  all,  arraigns  and 
rebukes  the  men  who  scoff  at  the  Lord's 
coming.  There  will  be  such  men.  In  the 
last  days,  is  the  testimony,  perilous  times  shall 
come.  Men  will  be  lovers  of  pleasure  more 
than  lovers  of  God.  Having  the  form  of 
godliness  they  will  deny  its  power.  They  will 
resist  the  truth.  They  will  become  reprobate 
concerning  the  faith.  They  will  walk  in  their 
own  lusts.  Unbelief  will  keep  pace  with 
impiety.  Impiety  will,  sooner  or  later,  show 
itself  in  scoffing.  When  faithful  ones  here 
and  there  utter  the  admonitions  of  truth,  the 
shout  will  go  up,  "  Aha  !  where,  where  is  the 
promise  of  His  coming.?  The  heavens  above 
us  are  now  just  as  they  were  at  the  beginning ! 
This  firm  earth  will  never  be  moved  !  Away 
with  your  idle  tales  ! "  Perhaps  the  perilous 
times  have  already  come.  Certainly  there 
are  scoffers  even  now.     But,  whether  now  or 


Power  and  Use  of  this  Hojpe,  159 

then,  what  shall  we  do  ?  Listen  :  "  I  charge 
thee  before  God,  and  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ, 
who  shall  judge  the  quick  and  the  dead  at  His 
appearing  and  His  kingdom — preach  the 
Word."  "The  day  of  the  Lord  will  come  as. 
a  thief  in  the  night ;  in  the  which  the  heavens 
will  pass  away  with  a  great  noise,  and  the 
elements  shall  melt  with  fervent  heat ;  the 
earth  also,  and  the  works  that  are  therein,  shall 
be  burned  up." 

SLOTHFUL    SERVANTS. 
(Matt.  24:  48 ;  Luke  21  :  34). 

The  scoffers  may  be  in  the  visible  Church. 
Without  doubt,  this  is  the  position  of  the 
slothful  servants.  They  profess  to  be  ser- 
vants. To  this  extent,  therefore,  they  own 
the  absent  Lord.  They  have,  however,  lost 
faith  in  Him.  They  have  let  go  His  word. 
He  said  :  "  I  will  come  again  ; "  "  Behold  I  will 
come  quickly  ! "  They  say,  "  We  see  no  signs." 
The  world  is  moving  grandly  onward.  Its 
manufactures,  its  commerce,  its  arts,  its  wealth, 


160  The  Blessed  Hope, 

its  learning,  its  whole  sum  of  civilization,  how 
imposing!  Can  all  this  be  suddenly  arrested  ? 
The  Lord  delayeth  His  coming.  Indeed,  will 
He  ever  come  ?  Their  sense  of  duty  grows 
weak.  Their  attachments  to  this  world  grow 
strong.  They  begin  to  smite  their  fellow-ser- 
vants, and  to  eat  and  drink  with  the  drunken. 
Are  there  now  any  slothful  servants }  Do 
they  press  those  around  them  with  their  own 
paralyzing  unbelief?  What  then  .-^  Can  the 
unbelief  of  men  change  the  truth  of  God  ? 
Will  not  the  Lord  return,  and  return  suddenly.? 
Ought  not  the  faithful  servants  to  proclaim 
the  great  fact  everywhere,  if  so  be,  men  may 
be  ready  for  His  coming  }  Hear  the  voice  of 
the  Master!  "The  Lord  of  that  servant  shall 
come  in  a  day  when  he  looketh  not  for  Him, 
and  in  an  hour  that  he  is  not  aware  of,  and 
shall  cut  him  asunder,  and  appoint  him  his 
portion  with  the  hypocrites."  "  Watch  ye, 
therefore,  and  pray  always,  that  ye  may  be  ac- 
counted worthy  to  escape  all  these  things  that 


Power  and  Use  of  this  JELojpe.  161 

shall  come  to  pass,  and  to   stand  before  the 
Son  of  Man." 

SECULAR    LIFE, 
(i  Cor.  6  :  1-4). 

The  Church  is  in  the  world,  though  she  is 
not  of  it.  The  relations  of  each  to  the  other, 
in  the  persons  and  interests  which  pertain  to 
each,  are  most  intimate.  In  this  imperfect 
state,  there  are  rights  to  be  protected ;  there 
are  wrongs  to  be  redressed.  Sometimes 
questions  of  law  and  equity  spring  up  among 
those  for  whom  Christ  died,  and  Christian 
brother  arraigns  Christian  brother  before  un- 
believers. Those  who  sit  together  at  the 
table  of  the  Lord  contend  in  worldly  courts. 
Is  this  a  seemly  sight  ?  Can  it  be  pleasing  to 
the  divine  Master  ?  Must  it  not  bring  damage 
upon  His  cause  and  dishonor  upon  His  name? 
Ouofht  not  the  differences  of  Christian  breth- 
ren  to  be  adjusted  in  the  spirit  of  Christ, 
among  themselves  1     So  thought  the  blessed 


12 


162  •  The  Blessed  Hope. 

Paul.  The  contests  in  his  day  of  Christians 
with  Christians  before  earthly  tribunals,  grieved 
him,  and  called  from  him  an  earnest  remons- 
trance. They  have  not  been  limited  to  the 
time  of  Paul,  or  to  the  Christians  in  Corinth. 
Look  now  upon  the  Church  of  the  Living 
God.  What  can  be  done  1  How  shall  these 
unsightly  conflicts  of  believers  before  unbe- 
lievers be  made  to  cease  ?  What  special 
argument  does  the  Holy  Ghost  use  for  their 
suppression  ?  Turn  to  the  record.  "  Dare 
any  of  you,  having  a  matter  against  another, 
go  to  law  before  the  unjust  and  not  before 
the  saints  ?  "  Why  not  dare  to  do  it  ?  Why 
not  continue  to  do  it?  Why?  "Do  ye  not 
know  that  the  saints  shall  judge  the  world  ?  " 
Will  you  reverse  this,  and  have  the  world 
judge  the  saints  ?  And  further,  "  Do  ye  not 
know  that  we  shall  judge  angels?  "  Shall  we 
then  seek  to  be  judged  by  sinful  men  ?  O 
Church  of  the  Lord,  abase  not  thyself!  When 
the  Lord  comes,  we  shall  judge  the  world  and 
the  angels.     We   shall  partake  of  His  glory. 


Power  and  Use  of  this  Ilojpe.  163 

We  shall  sit  with  Him  in  His  throne.  He 
will  give  us  power  over  the  nations.  He  will 
make  us  priests  and  kings  unto  God,  and  we 
shall  reign  on  the  earth. 

OFFICIAL    POSITION, 
(i   Pet.  5  :  1-4). 

When  the  Lord  Jesus  ascended  up  on  high 
He  was  still  mindful  of  His  Church.  He  sent 
upon  it  the  Holy  Ghost.  He  carried  forward, 
within  it,  the  divine  revelation.  He  gave  to 
it  apostles,  prophets  and  evangelists,  for  the 
special  needs  of  the  time  then  present.  As 
the  permanent  gifts  of  His  grace,  He  also 
bestowed  pastors  and  teachers.  Christ  him- 
self is  the  chief  Shepherd  of  the  Church.  The 
pastors  and  teachers  are  shepherds  under 
Christ.  They  have  the  present  care  of  His 
beautiful  flock.  It  is  theirs  to  open  to  them 
the  green  pastures  and  refresh  them  from  the 
pure  waters ;  to  gather  the  lambs  in  their 
arms  and  carry  them  in  their  bosom  ;  to  guard 
them  against  danger  and  evil,  and  present 
them  at   length  faultless  in  the  presence  of 


164:  The  Blessed  Hope. 

His  glory.  What  an  office  and  work  ;  how 
high  and  sacred  !  But  its  possibihties  of  evil 
are  equal  to  its  possibilities  for  good.  We 
have  this  treasure  in  earthen  vessels.  The 
shepherds  may  prove  faithless  and  false  ;  they 
may  lose  sight  of  the  Master,  and  set  at 
naught  His  most  holy  will ;  they  may  become 
hirelings,  whose  own  the  sheep  are  not ;  they 
may  flee  when  they  see  the  wolf  coming ; 
they  may  break  down  the  bars  of  the  fold  and 
let  in  all  manner  of  ravenous  beasts.  What 
sad  records  there  are  of  the  apostasy,  the 
corruption,  the  oppression  of  the  shepherds. 
The  Scriptures  foresaw  this.  They  gave 
warning  against  it.  They  presented  facts  and 
motives  for  unyielding  fidelity.  What  special 
fact  and  motive  does  the  ever-blessed  Spirit 
press  upon  the  shepherds,  that  they  may  be 
faithful  and  true  and  holy.f^  Simon  Peter  had 
seen  the  Lord  In  His  fearful  passion  in  the 
Garden,  and  on  Calvary.  He  had  also  seen 
Him  robed,  as  with  the  brightness  of  the  sun, 
in  those  fore-gleams  of  the  coming  glory,  on 


Power  and  Use  of  this  Hope.  165 

the  Mount  of  Transfiguration.  Through  him, 
therefore,  the  Spirit  cries  with  a  loud  voice  to 
the  shepherds,  "  Feed  the  flock  of  God  which 
is  among  you,  taking  the  oversight  thereof, 
not  by  constraint,  but  wilHngly ;  not  for  filthy 
lucre,  but  of  a  ready  mind ;  neither  as  being 
lords  over  God's  heritage,  but  being  ensamples 
to  the  flock.  "And  when  the  Chief  Shepherd 
shall  appear,  ye  shall  receive  a  crown  of  glory 
that  fadeth  not  away."  What  a  soul-inflaming 
and  soul-impelling  command  and  appeal !  O 
ye  shepherds  of  the  flock,  forget  not  that 
appearing.  With  most  sacred  vehemence 
covet  that  glorious  crown. 

CHRISTIAN    LABOR, 
(i  Cor.  15:  58). 

It  is  the  nature  of  life  to  be  active,  to  in- 
crease and  gain  expression ;  whether  it  be 
life  in  a  plant  or  life  in  a  soul.  Death  alone 
is  fixed.  True  religion  is  life.  So  the  Scrip- 
tures constantly  represent.  They  assume, 
therefore,  that  it  will  grow ;  that  it  will  be- 


166  The  Blessed  Hope. 

come  an  increasing  power  for  good  in  the 
individual,  and  through  the  individual,  in  the 
Church  and  the  world.  Because  of  their  new 
nature,  the  children  of  God  will  be  co-workers 
with  God.  How  does  the  Holy  Spirit  cherish 
and  enlarge  this  life  of  the  soul?  By  what 
means,  over  and  above  its  own  tendency,  does 
He  draw  it,  or  impel  it,  into  beneficent  and 
holy  action  1  By  means  of  truth.  What 
truth  ?  All  truth.  But  truth  has  its  special 
adaptations.  This  truth  will  fill  the  soul  with 
penitence ;  that  will  fire  it  with  love.  This 
truth  will  cause  the  soul  to  bow  down  in 
adoration  before  the  throne  ;  that  will  give  it 
wings,  as  of  an  angel,  to  fly  abroad,  in  the 
ministrations  of  blessing.  Would  you  have 
an  example  1  Paul  was  slain  by  the  Law  j 
he  was  made  alive  by  the  Gospel.  Has  the 
Church  since  seen  a  life  of  so  intense  Chris- 
tian love,  or  of  so  grand  Christian  work } 
What  special  truths  were  they  which  thus 
bore  him  up  and  on  1  First  of  all,  Christ  on 
the  cross ;   "  Who  loved   me,"  he  cries,  "  and 


Power  and  Use  of  this  Hope.  167 

gave  Himself  for  me."  Then,  Christ  in  His 
glory  and  the  saints  with  Him.  We  have 
seen  how  he  longed  for  that  resurrection, 
which  is  to  be  from  among  the  dead,  when 
the  Lord  shall  come.  It  was  no  transient 
feeling.  Hear  him  as  he  pleads  with  the 
Corinthians  :  "  Therefore,  beloved  brethren." 
Pause  a  moment.  Whence  this  therefore } 
What  gives  it  so  tremendous  power?  He 
has  been  telling  them  of  the  risen  Christ ; 
then  of  the  risen  saints ;  then  of  the  resurrec 
tion  body  —  sown  in  corruption,  raised  in 
incorruption ;  sown  in  dishonor,  raised  in 
glory ;  sown  in  weakness,  raised  in  power ; 
sown  a  natural  body,  raised  a  spiritual  body ; 
then  of  the  last  trump,  and  the  change  of  this 
mortal  into  immortality — all  at  Christ's  com- 
ing; and  then  •  He  cries,  "Therefore,  my 
beloved  brethren,  be  ye  steadfast,  immovable, 
always  abounding  in  the  work  of  the  Lord ; 
forasmuch  as  ye  know  that  your  labor  is  not 
in  vain  in  the  Lord." 


168  The  Blessed  Hope. 


PERSONAL    PURITY. 
(I  Johns:  2-3). 

In  order  to  its  most  effective  expression, 
the  divine  life  must  be  strong  within,  A 
large  stream  can  come  only  from  a  large 
fountain.  Holiness  is  power.  The  more 
holiness  the  more  power.  God's  people  are 
called  to  be  holy,  and  He  is  their  pattern,  by 
whom  they  are  called.  "  As  He  which  hath 
called  you  is  holy,  so  be  ye  holy,  in  all  manner 
of  conversation  ;  for  it  is  written.  Be  ye  holy 
for  I  am  holy."  This  is  the  likeness  of  God 
in  His  children.  By  this  they  are  known  as 
born  of  God,  The  primary  cause  of  this 
likeness  is  the  divine  Spirit.  Its  most  essen- 
tial means  is  the  revealed  Word.  Every 
word  of  God  is  in  order  to  holiness,  and 
tends  to  promote  it.  Tell  me  of  Christ  dying 
for  me,  and  how  can  I  live  any  longer  in  sin  ! 
Tell  me  of  Christ  rising  and  reigning  for  me, 
and  how  must  my  soul  be  drawn  upward ! 
This  is  the  experience  of  the  saints.  How 
deeply   John    felt    the    power   of    the    cross ! 


Power  and  Use  of  this  Hope.  169 

How  deeply,  at  the  same  time,  he  felt  the 
power  of  the  throne  !  "  Beloved,"  he  cried, 
"  now  are  we  the  sons  of  God."  It  does  not 
seem  so,  but  it  is  so.  And  this  flows  from 
Christ.  This,  however,  is  only  the  beginning. 
"It  doth  not,  indeed,  yet  appear  what  we  shall 
be  ;  but  we  know  that  when  He  shall  appear, 
we  shall  be  like  Him,  for  we  shall  see  Him  as 
He  is."  This  also  will  flow  from  Christ;  that 
from  the  virtue  of  His  death  ;  this  from  the 
vision  of  His  glory.  What  then.?  "Every 
one  that  hath  this  hope  in  Him  purifieth  him- 
self, even  as  He  is  pure."  What  a  clear 
and  solemn  testimony  from  the  last  of  the 
apostles.  And  observe :  the  power  of  this 
hope  to  purify  the  soul  will  be  according  to 
the  desire  of  the  soul  to  see  and  be  like  the 
glorious  Lord  in  the  great  day  of  His  appear- 
ing-  

PATIENCE    IN    TRIAL. 
Qas.  5  :  7,  8). 

As  it  was  with  the  Saviour,  so  it  is  with  the 
saved  —  the   cross   before    the    crown.      God 


170  The  Blessed  Hope. 

might,  indeed,  take  His  people  to  Himself  at 
once  on  their  regeneration.  They  would  then 
be  free  from  all  evil,  and  possess  and  enjoy- 
all  good.  In  His  presence  there  is  no  more 
death  ;  neither  sorrow,  nor  crying,  nor  pain ; 
but  the  lieht  which  has  no  shade,  and  the 
peace  and  joy  which  have  no  end.  This,  how- 
ever, is  not  the  way  of  God,  This  is  not  the 
law  of  His  kingdom.  In  calling  His  sons  unto 
glory  He  calls  them  through  suffering.  Look 
upon  the  white-robed  company  above  — 
whence  came  they  ?  Look  upon  the  sacra- 
mental host  below  —  what  labor,  discipline, 
conflict,  and  trial  upon  trial.  In  the  world, 
too,  what  spread  of  error ;  what  hate  of  truth  ; 
what  corruption  of  morals  and  manners  ;  what 
bribing  of  justice;  what  honoring  of  iniquity; 
what  oppression  of  the  poor ;  what  robbery  of 
the  widow  and  orphan  ;  what  frauds,  perjuries, 
violences,  on  every  side;  until,  like  the  souls 
under  the  altar,  we  cry,  "  O  Lord,  how 
long.^"  All  this  was,  indeed,  before  known 
and   before   written.     In   view    of  it   all,  the 


Power  and  Use  of  this  Hope.  171 

revealing  Spirit  gave  many  a  word  of  counsel 
and  comfort.  This  is  His  voice:  "Count  it, 
brethren,  all  joy  when  ye  fall  into  divers 
temptations;  knowing  that  the  trying  of  your 
faith  worketh  patience."  And  this  :  "  Tribula- 
tion worketh  patience,  and  patience  experi- 
ence, and  experience  hope,  and  hope  maketh 
not  ashamed."  And,  still  more  inspiriting, 
this  :  "  Be  patient,  brethren,  unto  the  coming 
of  the  Lord.  Behold,  the  husbandman  wait- 
eth  for  the  precious  fruit  of  the  earth,  and 
hath  long  patience  for  it,  until  he  receive  the 
early  and  the  latter  rain.  Be  ye  also  patient ; 
stablish  your  hearts,  for  the  coming  of  the 
Lord  draw^h  nigh."  Thou  martyr  at  the 
stake ;  thou  prisoner  in  the  dungeon ;  thou 
slave  writhing  under  the  lash  ;  thou  unrecom- 
pensed  toller,  working  yet  starving ;  thou 
plundered  widow ;  thou  beggared  orphan ; 
thou  heart-broken  wife;  thou  father  and 
mother,  going  with  sorrow  to  the  grave  ;  all 
ye  sufferers,  who,  while  ye  suffer,  cling  to  the 
crucified,  be  ye  patient,  for  the  Lord  is  com- 


172  TJie  Blessed  Hope. 

ing  :  "  Behold  the  Judge  standeth  before  the 
door." 

COMFORT    IN    SORROW, 
(i  Thess.  4:  13-18). 

What  dirges  of  sorrow  have  rolled  over  the 
earth  through  the  centuries  since  the  Fall,  and 
will  roll  until  the  Judgment.  Whence  have 
they  sprung  .r^  From  sin.  Sin  gave  birth  to 
sorrow.  Sin  is  itself  sorrow  in  the  seed.  Sin, 
when  it  is  finished,  bringeth  forth  death. 
Death  is  the  compacted  sum  of  all  evil. 
Take  it  here  as  applying  to  the  body.  What 
home  on  earth  has  not  been  darkened  by  the 
dread  shadow  of  death }  What  heart  on 
earth  has  not  been  wrung  and  torn  by  the 
icy  hand  of  death  }  Behold,  the  dead  are 
more  than  all  the  living.  Behold,  all  the 
living  will  presently  be  with  the  dead.  Make 
room,  more  room  for  the  graves  of  men  ! 

Is  there  any  healing  of  this  world-wide  sor- 
row ?  Can  the  abyss  of  death  be  spanned  with 
light  .^     It  is  possible.    It  has  been  done.    The 


Power  and  Use  of  this  Hope.  173 

divine  Revealer  speaks  comfortable  words 
concerning  the  saintly  dead.  They  rest,  He 
says, from  their  labors;  they  have  ceased  from 
sin.  Their  bodies  sleep  In  Jesus.  Their  souls 
still  live  and  rejoice  with  the  spirits  of  the 
just  made  perfect.  This  is,  Indeed,  comfort. 
These  gracious  words  have  quieted  many  a 
throbbing  heart.  They  have  chased  away 
many  a  hot  tear.  But,  do  even  they  rise  up 
to  the  full  want  of  them  who  go  mourning  for 
their  dead  ?  Is  there  not  yet  left  a  deep  pain 
to  be  reached  and  removed,  if  it  may  be,  by 
the  Almighty  Healer  of  sorrow  ?  What  then 
does  He  further  say?  What  still  more 
definite  and  grand  revelation  does  He  make 
that  this  sorrow  also  may  be  gone,  and  even 
turned  into  joy  .^  Hear  Him:  "  I  would  not 
have  you  Ignorant,  brethren,  concerning  them 
which  are  asleep,  that  ye  sorrow  not,  even  as 
others  which  have  no  hope.  For  If  ye  believe 
that  Jesus  died  and  rose  again,  even  so  them 
also  which  sleep  In  Jesus  will  God  bring  with 
Him.     For  this  we  say  unto  you  by  the  word 


1Y4  The  Blessed  Hope. 

of  the  Lord,  that  we  which  are  aHve  and 
remain  unto  the  coming  of  the  Lord,  shall 
not  prevent  them  which  are  asleep.  For  the 
Lord  himself  shall  descend  from  heaven  with 
a  shout,  with  the  voice  of  the  archangel,  and 
with  the  trump  of  God ;  and  the  dead  in 
Christ  shall  rise  first ;  then  we  which  are 
alive  and  remain  shall  be  caught  up  together 
with  them  In  the  clouds  to  meet  the  Lord  in 
the  air ;  and  so  shall  we  ever  be  with  the 
Lord.  Wherefore,  comfort  one  another  with 
these  words." 

CONCLUSION. 

This  then  Is  that  blessed  hope  ;  the  glori- 
ous coming  of  the  Lord.  It  Is  the  next 
great  epoch  of  the  future. 

The  Old  Testament  saints  looked  forward 
to  the  first  coming  of  Christ.  It  was  their 
polar  star.  After  weary  ages  faith  was  turned 
into  sight.  Men  saw  the  Son  of  God  incar- 
nate. Simeon  took  Him  in  his  arms.  Mary- 
sat  adoring  at  His  feet.     Peter  pressed  close 


Power  and  Use  of  this  Hope.  175 

to  His  side.  John  rested  on  His  bosom. 
Paul,  too,  saw  Him  on  his  way  to  Damascus, 
and  the  sl^^ht  was  his  salvation.  Jews  and 
Gentiles  saw  Him  and  put  Him  to  death  on 
the  cross. 

The  New  Testament  saints  look  forward  to 
the  second  coming  of  Christ.  This  Is  their 
polar  star.  Again,  the  ages  have  been  long 
and  weary,  but  the  end  cometh.  The  world 
may  scoff;  and  the  Church  even  may  let  go 
this  holy  faith ;  but,  at  the  appointed  time, 
the  Church  and  the  world  will  see  the  Lord 
coming  in  power  and  for  righteous  judgment. 
They  will  see  the  dead  in  Christ  living,  and 
sitting  with  Him  in  His  throne,  and  then  the 
millennial  glory.  This  vast  truth  pervades 
and  inflames  the  Scriptures.  They  declare  it 
as  a  divine  certainty.  They  make  it  the 
ground  of  argument.  They  hold  it  up  as  a 
most  powerful  motive.  They  use  It  to 
strengthen  faith,  encourage  hope,  promote 
'  humility,  fortify  patience,  mitigate  sorrow, 
incite    watchfulness,  impel  obedience,  inspire 


1Y6  The  Blessed  Hope. 

prayer,  increase  holiness,  and  awaken  joy. 
What  a  great  blank  there  would  be  without  it 
in  even  the  Word  of  God  !  What  a  serious 
subtraction  there  would  be  from  those  sacred 
resources,  by  which  His  people  are  made 
strong  for  the  work  and  battle  of  life,  and  to 
win  the  conqueror's  crown.  What  wonder 
that  Paul  calls  it,  moved  by  his  own  sense  of 
its  grandeur,  and  by  the  special  light  and 
power  of  the  Holy  Ghost:  "That  blessed 
hope,  even  the  glorious  appearing  of  the  great 
God,  and  our  Saviour  Jesus  Christ." 

"  O  what  a  bright  and  shining-  world, 
This  groaning  earth  of  ours  will  be, 
When  from  its  throne,  the  Tempter  hurled, 
Shall  leave  it  all,  O  Lord,  to  Thee. 

O  blessed  Lord,  with  weeping  eyes. 
That  bhssful  hour  we  wait  to  see  ; 

While  every  worm  or  leaf  that  dies. 
Tells  of  the  curse,  and  calls  for  Thee. 

Come  Saviour,  then,  o'er  all  below 

Shine  brightly  from  Thy  throne  above  ; 

Bid  heaven  and  earth  Thy  glory  show. 
And  all  creation  feel  Thy  love." 


^TJNIVBRSITT 


'o'lnS^ 


UNIVEESITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY, 

BERKELEY 


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